The WALRUS - St. Sebastian's SchoolThe WALRUS The time has come, the Walrus said, to talk of many things: Of shoes and ships and sealing wax, of cabbages and kings. - Lewis Carroll

St. Sebastian’s School

The WALRUSThe time has come, the Walrus said, to talk of many things:Of shoes and ships and sealing wax, of cabbages and kings. - Lewis Carroll

October 2010Vol LXIV, No. 1

NEWS SPORTS

New Teacher ProfilesCheck it out on Pages 3 & 4

The week of Septem-ber 27th, 2010, was saturated with bubbling anticipation. Each day brought forth more announcements, even more talk, and still more Dunkin Donuts munchkins in the foy-er of the Academic Building. For the seniors, Homecoming 2010 was partly a poignant and emotional day, as several Arrows took the field before the notoriously huge crowd for one last performance. In stark contrast, however, wide-eyed seventh grad-ers got only their first taste of that unique Fall Classic atmosphere. Though not ev-ery team in competition last Saturday earned a pleasing result, it was a day to remem-ber for all who attended.

Homecoming festivi-ties began with Headmaster Burke addressing the mas-sive crowd, followed by a beautifully sung National Anthem by 2002 graduate James Keefe. As both varsity soccer and football squads kicked off against the Knights of Buckingham Brown and Nichols, an almost illegal number of students flooded to the far endzone to par-ticipate in some good old fashioned cheering “for, not against”. This scene, the epit-ome of outstanding athletic support, must have instilled courage and pride within the hearts of the Black and Red, who were bracing themselves for glorious combat. There was body paint, body armor, and several extremely inap-propriate guttural noises being screeched through two well-hidden vuvuzelas. No, I didn’t stutter—Vuvuzelas. In addition, the “I Believe That We Will Win” chant, which has reached schoolwide ac-claim (it was started by the Utah State University Men’s Basketball student-section), was performed to perfec-tion—so well, actually, that BB&N’s robust place-kicker

Our Own Fall Classic: HOMECOMING 2010

asked to be substituted. Over on the soccer field, the Arrows were forc-ing their will on the strug-gling Knights. After many close chances elicited “ooh”s and “ahh”s from the fan section, the Black and Red’s efforts finally came to frui-tion. Dillon Kerr ‘11 hurled his freakish right foot onto a gorgeous feed to put the Arrows up 1-0. Lou Heck ‘11 began a raucous rendition of “He Who Would Valiant Be” as the parents of the play-ers stared in dismay while applauding Dilligan’s saucy goal. BB&N Nation was driv-en only deeper into manic depression in the second half, when none other than John Charles Callanan ‘11 did ex-tremely well to use his head on a cross into the box. The ball spun off his greased-up mohawk past the sprawling BB&N keeper. After pulling out his fake arrow and shoot-ing in celebration, Callanan greeted his teammates, and at that point, the fat lady hath sung the final dirge.

On the football field, the Arrows were a surprise to many during the first half. BB&N, a bigger, more ath-letic, faster, and battle -tested team struggled to find their offense against a stalwart Seb’s defense. A stalemate began to form, though, as the Arrows offense also failed to hit its stride early. Through-out the game, a combina-tion of turnovers, a constant BB&N running attack, and a huge offensive line began to wear down the Black and Red defense, and a few long drives led to Knights’ rush-ing touchdowns. Though the Arrows fell 28-6, the team can clearly pride themselves on holding their own against a ridiculously good team.

While the battles waged on in the fall breeze, students wandered into the vast St. Sebastian’s apparel tent, where mothers from the Guild of St. Irene were selling

the newest Arrows gear. The Alumni Association’s Hospi-tality Tent was busy through-out the day, while the Men’s Association collaborated with Sage Dining to provide the always-classic cookout in front of the gym, where burg-ers and hot dogs were served steaming to students and spectators alike (note: absurd alliteration). Younger broth-ers, sisters, and rambunctious children of the faculty were having the time of their lives on the enormous inflatable slide, while others played basketball at the inflatable arcade style hoops station. There was also a woman blowing up balloons lurking around the premises…

Homecoming is always special because of the little things we see that remind us why we’re here at St. Sebastian’s. Whether it’s the return of Mr. Goulet’s Sword of St. Sebastian (which stands the height of 6 seventh graders stacked one on top of the other) to the fan section, Charlie Callanan’s ’11 Robin Hood and Dillon Kerr’s ‘11 slip n’ slide goal celebrations on the pitch, or the sight of the whole school community coming together for one epic day, Homecoming never ceases to make us proud. Saturday was a typical back and forth day for athletics, but the spectators saw valiant efforts from both squads. Just because Sharon and Janet can’t push any more mashed potatoes on our offensive and defensive linemen doesn’t mean we can’t compete with bigger teams, which we proved on Saturday. As a senior myself, I can say I am very proud of the way our teams competed, and also of the way our student section supplied unwavering sup-port. Special thanks to the Guild of St. Irene, the Men’s Association, the Alumni As-sociation, Student Council, MPA, and Sage Dining for making the day possible.

BY EDMUND MURPHY ‘11SENIOR EDITOR

Frenzied Arrows supporters serve as the Football squad’s twelfth man on Homecoming Saturday

On August 30th in the year of our Lord 2010, the St. Sebastian’s class of 2011 took a trip up to Dub-lin, New Hampshire to climb Mount Monadnock. Once there, the seniors were to link up with members of the leadership business ““The Program”” and embarked on a daylong journey to the mountain’s summit. The idea behind ““The Program”” is to pro-vide leadership training and help develop students to effectively lead themselves, their peers, and followers to greater success. More commonly, it develops student athletes and cor-porate managers with the hope and ability to reach their highest athletic and leadership potential. “The Program” consists of current and ex-military officers, as well as local athletes from Boston College. “The Program” works with many New England schools and colleges. One of the many appealing aspects about it is the em-ployment of soldiers. As Mr. Nunan said “We recognize that the military has many ways of teaching leader-ship skills and people have a high respect for that kind of training. We thought it was better to hear the instructions coming out of

a seasoned Marine who has learned these skills, rather than having someone come in and lecture.” The day began with a Class of 2011 gathering in the McCulloch Room to meet with the three members of “The Program” that would accompany the class on the hike up the mountain that day. When the seniors reached the mountain, they split up into five groups or “fire squads”, each with nine members each, and create a stretcher made out of noth-ing other than to broom han-dles and four feet of string. The groups were then tasked with carrying one member of their fire squad and two gal-lons of water a half-mile up the mountain. Many groups struggled with the structure of their stretcher but eventu-ally made it up the half-mile without any injuries. It took about three hours to climb the entire mountain. Once the class got to the top of the moun-tain, it was time for lunch. As a meal, the students were served MREs or “meals ready to eat”. MREs are synthetic meals that soldiers carry along with them to eat in the field. Johnny Rodriguez said “contrary to popular belief, they were decent but we only had like three minutes to eat them.”

The members of the class were sweating and exhaust-ed by the time they reached the top but the journey was not over. 90% of all injuries on hikes up mountains oc-cur on the way down, so each student took special care with every step they took. An even bigger stroke of luck led to each student reaching the bottom of the mountain safely and without harm. The group led by Alex Hunnewell was the fastest to the top and bottom. I know. Alex Hunnewell. I was shocked, too. After one last picture, the moderators of “The Program” gave out the legendary ““The Program”” T-shirt. The T-shirt goes out to the one student who most closely exemplifies what it means to be a team member. This time, the shirt went to Tom Nunan for his courage and responsibility during the climb. “Overall,” said Mr. Nunan, “I believe the class got a positive, shared experi-ence that has helped them grow as one and let them create connections with each other. It is something we can share and give us bet-ter support for one another.” Many students agreed with Mr. Nunan. “Yes,” said J-Rod, “I feel like I can do anything with my classmates now. I liked the Marines, they’re pretty legit.”

Program Drafts Seb’s Seniors for Epic Hike

BY JOHN BARRACK ‘11

Why’d the Sox Miss Out? Turn to Page 7 for Ryan Bacic’s Editorial

The beautiful Mt. Monadnock, home of the infamous senior climb hosted by “The Program.”

Do Not Appear in Photo:

16 Members of the original Class of 2011

THE WALRUSPage 2 October 2010

The WalrusA St. Sebastian’s Publication

The Walrus is the official student newspaper of St. Sebastian’s School. The Walrus seeks to provide news and entertainment for the St. Sebastian’s community, as well as to provide an open forum for students to offer opinions on issues related to world, na-tional, and school affairs. The opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect opin-ions of the faculty advisors or senior editors of The Walrus or of St. Sebastian’s School. Correspondence to The Walrus should be addressed to The Walrus, c/o St. Sebas-tian’s School, 1191 Greendale Avenue, Needham, MA, 02492. Senior Editors and produc-tion staff reserve the right to reject, edit, or admit any or all submissions. To submit an article, email it to [email protected].

Senior Editors: Edmund Murphy ‘11, Dillon Ecclesine ‘11, Tom Hoff ‘11, Tom Keefe ‘11, Alex Spear ‘11

Apprentice Editors: Dr. Doofenshmirtz and his daughter Vanessa

CONTRIBUTORS: John Barrack ‘11, Andrew DeMatteo ‘11, Peter Breslin ‘13, Tom Nunan ‘11, Peter Cimini ‘12, Sam Racine ‘11, Tyler Sweeney ‘12, Chris Warner ‘11, Robbie Spencer ‘11, Tommy McCabe ‘13, John Real ‘13, James O’Leary ‘13, Sean Frazzette ‘12, Shane McDonald ‘14, and Jack Goldman ‘13.

[Editors’ Note: Many other students have signed up for the newspaper at this point, so more names will be added for 2010-2011 as contributions are made in the November issue and throughout the year to come.]

Editors Emeritus: Brendan Ecclesine, Ned Kingsley, David Ruffolo

Faculty Advisor: Mr. Dan Drummond

QUOTES of the MONTH

Head Writers: Ryan Bacic ‘11, Nick Creegan ‘11, Nick Chappel ‘11, Andrew DeMatteo ‘11, Tom Murphy ‘11

It’s here. And it’s never been better or more realistic. Get to your nearest GameStop, GameCrazy, Walmart, Block-buster, or any store that sells video games, because FIFA 11 has destroyed the shelves. Kaká is joined by Carlos Vela and Landon Donovan on the cover of the new game. The graphics are pretty much the same, but game play is totally different. No more clicking A and pointing to the player you want to pass to anymore. You have to actually get the player with the ball to be looking at the player who you want to pass to in order to be successful. Game play is much more realistic, and because of this the new FIFA game is harder than all that precede it. Everyone, except for Alex Hunnewell, thinks that the game is much harder. Hun-newell, who is not even good at FIFA, believes that it is “just as easy as any other FIFA,” but, asking literally every other per-son in the world, the final results lead to 6,199,999,999 people think that the game is harder than all other FIFA games, and a single lad who believes it is “just as easy.” Go figure. The higher level of diffi-culty of the game also raises the excitement of playing. Watching

the FIFA World Cup this sum-mer, many of us were lucky to see more than one goal scored in a game. In FIFA 11, instead of multiplayer, or even single play-er games becoming a shootout, one goal may be the deciding factor. It is harder to score, and because of this, the celebrations become even better. Celebra-tions are one major difference in this year’s FIFA. There are no more computer-simulated celies. You either celie yourself, or there is no celebration at all. The more realistic style of game play along with the harder scor-ing and passing make the game that much more fun to play. Do not sit back in Johnny’s base-ment talking about what dance is going to be poppin’ the next night or how many girls are coming to your Halloween party. Sit forward and pay attention to the game. One second of atten-tion towards Sally’s firefighter outfit and you are done. Obviously, all the rosters are updated. Ibra is on Milan, Rémy on Marseilles, and it should be illegal to play as Barcelona while playing mul-tiplayer. Do not underestimate the computer as well. If you are in the higher level of human be-ings at St. Sebastian’s School in Needham, MA, and you play on Legendary, the computer has the knowledge and ability to dangle

you. If you think that you can easily stop Ronaldo on a break-away, remember to bring tissues for when you end up crying because you just got rainbowed. This game surpasses any other FIFA. When you score, you actually feel a sense of ac-complishment because it is much harder to score in this new game. When you let up a goal, there is a feeling of disappointment in your heart. EA Sports realizes how scoring is now harder to do, and they have added a few things for you to keep track of your accomplishments. There is a replay theater, in which you can save any replay of any goal you want, and you can watch it at any time. At the end of every match, you have the capability to watch the key moments of the math, either being a goal, a miss, or a save. And the game now keeps a record of every game you play, against the computer, against a friend, or on Live. There is also a new Career mode in which you can be a player-manager and create a player while at the same time be the manager of the team. Getting FIFA 11 will change the way you think of sports games. FIFA 11 is here. Do not miss it. Let me reiterate. Do not miss it.

The Wait Ends: FIFA ‘11

Massive Crowd Helps Fall Dance Set Record Attendance

BY NICK CHAPPEL ‘11

BY JAMES O’LEARY ‘13 Fists were pump-ing, lights were flashing, and students from grades nine to twelve danced their hearts out at this year’s incredible fall dance. On Friday September the 24th the St. Sebastian’s student council hosted a dance that may turn out to be the event of the year. The dance had a techno/house theme, providing mag-nificent lighting, loud dance music, and arguably the best, most intense club like scenario manageable around these parts. The students from St. Sebas-tian’s School, Dana Hall, Newton Country Day, Winsor, and others assembled in Ward Hall for an excellent night of dancing and reveling. The dance began at 7:30

and continued through the night until 10, a solid two and a half hours of great fun. Before the doors had even opened, students lined up with their money and identification in hand eager to get in the dance. Anyone who was anybody was certain to make an appearance that night. Once the clock had struck 7:30, the crowds began to swarm and fill Ward Hall. Students came dressed in ridiculous clothing, including lax pinnies, spandex, crazy col-ors, and with such strange attire that they could even be con-sidered Halloween costumes. At first not much dancing and a lot of standing around fore-shadowed an uneventful night and another boring dance, but when students joined in a re-

volt of the DJ, things changed. Led by the seniors of St. Sebas-tian’s School, all the students proceeded to stop all dancing, sit on the ground, and chant, “We want Leith.” The student’s wish was granted, and David, known as DJ Leithal Weapon, began to play techno beats, working his magic by creat-ing an excellent playlist that included songs by the crowd favorite DJ Tiesto. The dance took a turn for the better, and soon the crowd began to get the dance started off right, enjoying themselves fully. The dance turned out to be one of the best in years, setting the bar high and rais-ing expectations for future St. Sebastian’s School dances to come.

Valiant Arrows and ladies from across the land jam to DJ Leith’s Techno Masterpieces

“Some People think that more knowledge is a bad thing. I disagree, because then people will do stuff like vote for the Tea Party.” - Mr. Thomasy

“Some kids tell me, ‘I can’t go to Debate; I go to Church on Sundays,’ as if anyone would choose God over me.” - Mr. Nerbonne, forgetting that we are, in fact, a Catholic school

“Lou Heck has a girlfriend???!!!” - Various and sundry

“Nerbana?? Smells like Dean Spirit!” - Mr. Ferguson

“I’ve only been watching ‘Phineas and Ferb’ for about a year and a half, so I’m not all caught up.” - Mr. Drummond

“I always forget that women apply to college also.” - John Fee ‘11

THE WALRUSOctober 2010 Page 3

I recently had the good fortune to sit down with Mr. Matt Shea, a new teacher at St. Seb’s, hailing from our theology department. Mr. Shea teaches three seventh grade sections, one section of juniors, and one section of seniors. He will be the assistant coach for the Varsity Basketball team and the assistant coach for Middle School Lacrosse. He has also joined Schola as a faculty singer. On a recent Friday afternoon, I threw a series of decidedly wide-ranging questions at him, and he responded always with thoughtfulness and thoroughness.

Tom Nunan: What were your main interests in high school?

Mr. Shea: My main interests in high school were sports (basketball and football), movies (sci-fi/fantasy, especially Lord of the Rings and Star Wars), ping-pong, video games (Halo), and musicals.

TN: What did you pursue in college?

MS: I developed a passion for learning philosophy and theology. I enjoyed singing in the University Chorale, was an officer for it, and traveled abroad to Ireland, Spain, and Italy with it as well. I had good experiences with service projects, such as being a teaching assistant and mentor to freshman students in the Academic Companions program and participating in a ministry internship downtown at a homeless shelter.

Also, I did a weekly service project where we brought sandwiches to homeless people downtown. I also taught preschool CCD at St. Ignatius Parish in Newton. My spiritual jour-ney and faith development really characterized my college experience, and definitely stands out when I reflect about my time at B.C.

TN: How did you hear about St. Seb’s, and what attracted you to the School?

MS: I first heard about St. Seb’s when an educational placement agency referred me to it. I was attracted by the curriculum because it includes philosophy and theology classes. I was also impressed by the School’s mission to pursue truth through faith and reason and to de-velop students intellectually, morally, and spiritually.

TN: If you could introduce one new book into the existing curriculum of either your seventh grade, junior, or senior classes, what would it be and why?

MS: If time permitted, I would add Hobbes, Rousseau, Kant, and Kierkegaard to the Western Philosophy Curriculum, because I read all these philosophers during my freshman year at BC, and some I read later.

TN: Have you developed any specific methods or philosophies for teaching your classes?

MS: I don’t know if I’ve developed any myself, but I’ve adopted some that I think work the best. I make my classes discussion-based rather than lecture-based to create an atmosphere of conversation with each other and with the great minds of the past.

TN: What has most impressed you about St. Seb’s?

MS: I was most impressed by how welcoming and helpful everyone, including faculty and students, has been.

TN: If you had unlimited time either to do something new or to learn about something new, what would that something be?

MS: There are three areas in which I would like to become more educated. One is the history of philosophy, another is biblical scholarship, and the third is Greek and Latin. I have a ten volume history of philosophy series and I’ve read only the first volume.

TN: What is your connection to Massachusetts?

MS: I was born in Massachusetts and lived right down the street in Needham as a young kid, but then moved to Pittsburgh at age 9. My parents tell me that I played soccer on the St. Bart’s fields growing up. I went to BC and have been living in Boston ever since.

TN: What are your favorite candies?

MS: My favorite candies are Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and Jelly Belly Jelly Beans.

I thank Mr. Shea for taking a substantial amount of time out of his Friday afternoon to answer these questions in depth and for giving the whole school a chance to get to know him a little better. Even though this is Mr. Shea’s first year as a teacher, he possesses great talent and enthusiasm for educating. St. Seb’s is definitely a good fit for him.

Q&A With New Teacher Mr. SheaBY TOM NUNAN ‘11

New Law: Don’t Even Try ItBY TOM HOFF ‘11

SENIOR EDITOR

On the last day of September, the official Massa-chusetts anti-texting law took effect. The law now affects both junior operators and adults as primary offenses. According to the Massachu-setts state senate, the laws are in effect because of rising numbers of teen accidents, accidents due to phone use, and cops noticing that driv-ers are losing control, even just enough to swerve into the other lane for a second or two. The first aspect that all of the drivers in the Com-monwealth must know is the most obvious one — what has been outlawed. For driv-ers under 18, the laws are far stricter. There is no talking at any time (except emergencies, shocker), unless the driver has pulled over and the car is in park. Texting is now against the law, as the cre-ative title of this article would suggest. However, it’s more than that. Anything with email, music, or any other cool apps are outlawed, as well. (Yes, Alex Hunnewell, that means your awesome flute app, which you’re so insistent that everyone knows about.) This law serves as a further reminder for those who weren’t sure that up-dating your facebook status while driving isn’t a smart move. Genius. Although it is interesting to note that Mas-sachusetts lawmakers believe that teenagers are driving around emailing their friends all the time. Also genius. Next, they’ll call phones “ma-chines you can text on,” like Mr. Thomasy.

Either the best or worst part of the law, de-pending on who you ask, is the penalties for junior operators. Anyone can be

pulled over for texting or calling as a primary offense. What this means is a cop does not have to find something else that someone’s doing wrong to pull him over. If an under-18 driver is using the phone, he can be written up for that offense and that offense only. The penalty, the toughest part, is a 60-day license suspension, even if you turn 18 three weeks after losing the license, complete with a retake of the permit and license tests and a day of drivers’ ed. While the ticket for a first time offender can’t exceed $100, and the penal-ties don’t carry insurance increases, the main problem for a teenager would be an “attitude” course taught by a driving instructor who prob-ably will tell you “You are an irresponsible driver” all day. Sounds awesome -- avoid it.

For adults, the laws are a little easier, but by no means lenient. The offense penalties are $100, $250, and $500 for first, second, and third time offenders, respec-tively. If you try a fourth time, there’s just something wrong with you. Those over 18 are only allowed to use a phone for talking, presum-ing that it does not distract the driver from the road. All other forms of using a phone are prohibited. While an adult could simply look at a first-time offense as just an expensive parking ticket, as they don’t hurt insur-ance rates or cause a license suspension, others have also noted that a texting ticket could mean another kind of ticket. For example, if a per-son is going 10 mph over the limit, a lot of the time the cop lets him go and doesn’t even pull him over. However, if the cop has used his time to pull someone over and write a texting ticket, don’t you

think he’ll wanna dish out more of a penalty than just the equivalent of a $100 park-ing ticket? I would assume so. Suddenly, that $100, one time texting ticket can turn into $100 speeding ticket (or more), which means hun-dreds of dollars in insurance money, especially if under 21.

While Governor Pat-rick’s new law isn’t as well-liked as all of the other amaz-ing things he’s done (calm down, that was a jab), I feel it is necessary. While everyone thinks that he can text at the wheel or talk at the wheel and not be distracted, we can’t view the law that way. Not everyone is as good at everything as they think, but you already knew that. Even if you can talk and drive, or even if you think you can text and not be distracted, which I highly doubt, that’s great for you. Fine. Maybe you deserve a cookie. But I guar-antee you that your opinion on the law would change the minute you’re in an accident through no fault of your own because some other driver was texting.

Due to the new law, the roads should be safer, especially as we head to win-ter. Now drivers focus more on the road. There is more time to react to a car stopping short, which always seems to catch you by surprise, no matter how much attention you’re paying. Now, Nick Chappel will be able to fully look out for cops on the me-dian of the highway. OK, so he wasn’t texting, but it still helps the argument. Just re-member not to text no matter what age you are, and don’t talk if you’re under 18. Oh yeah, and don’t send emails while driving, as I’m sure you were going to.

Governor Deval Patrick of Massachusetts prepares to sign the texting bill in his office.

While roaming the halls this year, returning upperclass-men will be happy to recognize two former teachers that have returned to Sebs’ glorious halls. Although we will not yet be graced with the return of the famous Mr. Webb or Ms. John-ston, we are thrilled to welcome Mr. Weihman and Mrs. Colton back to the Arrows family. Being the lucky reporter that I am, was graced with the responsibility of interviewing these two legend-ary teachers about their years away from St. Sebastian’s. After spending much time trying to contact both of them, this is what I finally came up with.

Peter Cimini: Hello, Mr. Weih-man, how are you?

Mr. Weihman: Good, thanks.

PC: I’m here to ask you a few questions about your time away from Sebs.

W: Okay, fire away.

PC: Well first off, where did you go?

W: I went to St. George’s School in Rhode Island, which is actual-ly in Middletown, Rhode Island, not Newport as they try to make

it seem.

PC: How was it?

W: It was OK, radically different than here.

PC: What did you do there?

W: I taught 9th and 11th grade English.

PC: What is it like to be back?

W: It feels like I never left, except that all of the students I taught are about a foot and a half taller.

PC: Are there any big differ-ences?

W: I don’t teach 7th grade any-more.

PC: What do you teach then?

W: Freshman Writing and Fresh-man English.

PC: What made you want to come back to Sebs?

W: I like the people, the attitude and environment is better, and I like how we strive to be scholars as well as strong men.

PC: Are you coaching any sports?

W: I’m going to help out with varsity lacrosse, and I’m gonna coach some level of hockey.

PC: To help some of your current students, what are you biggest pet peeves?

W: When people abuse the word “wicked”...and untucked shirts.

PC: Who is your favorite role model?

W: Derek Jeter.

PC: Who or what do you plan on being for Halloween?

W: Maybe a clown or ghost, but probably Pikachu.

PC: How has your family been? How many kids do you have now?

W: We have been good, and I have two kids, Fritz who is two and Charles who is 5 months.

PC: What is your favorite ani-mal?

W: Wow, there are so many to choose. The Wombat is the larg-est rodent, but the narwhal is pretty awesome, too.

PC: Thanks for your time, Mr. Weihman -- are there any mes-sages you would want to pass onto the Sebs’ community?

W: Work hard, and be good to your parents.

After this conversation, I moved up to the Middle School science lab and talked to Mrs. Colton.

Peter Cimini: Mrs. Colton, where were you last year?

C: I was in Oxford, England.

PC: Why were you there?

C: My husband is a professor at Harvard, and we went on a Sab-batical.

PC: What did you do there?

C: I traveled enormous amounts; I visited 14 countries in Europe, Asia, and Africa, plus extensive travel in the UK.

PC: Where was the best place you visited?

C: Probably Uganda. I am part of a foundation that supports pri-mary schools in Uganda. I went to Uganda to meet with head teachers, help with construc-tion, conduct interviews, etc. The schools there are so needy and I really enjoyed helping with whatever I could do.

PC: While in the UK, did you eat any mud pies?

C: Absolutely.

PC: What does it feel like to be back at Sebs?

C: Everything is very familiar, except the new people, so I have enjoyed meeting all of the new teachers and students.

PC: What do you think about the new science building?

C: I’m SO EXCITED! It will really

improve how we will be able to teach science here.

PC: Do you have a message to send on to the entire commu-nity?

C: Ever since I have been back, all the teachers and students have been very nice to me, and I have felt very welcomed, so I would like to say thank you.

PC: Thanks for your time

Two teachers have returned home, and have been greeted with open arms. If you are walking down the hall and see either of these two teach-ers, spend some time to catch up because both of them hinted to have awesome stories that could not be published in this esteemed periodical. Well, this is true for Mr. Weihman, but I’m sure that Mrs. Colton has some great stories as well. We’re glad they’re back with us at Sebs.

New Yet Familiar Faces: Mr. Weihman and Mrs. Colton Return To Dominate St. Sebs

BY PETER CIMINI ‘12


“This play will be the best pro-duction St. Sebastian’s has ever put forth,” claims Tom Keefe ‘11, co-president of the drama club. Arrogant? Perhaps. True? Pos-sibly. But with the confidence this senior shows here, everyone can bet this play will be money. “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” is one of only eight Pulitzer Prize-winning musicals, with superb quality similar to a Master Palmaccio weather prediction. Praised as the funniest and greatest mu-sicals of all time, this year’s fall play is a guaranteed smash hit, and it is coming to a Ward Hall near you. On November 5th and 6th, at 7:00pm, How to Succeed will premier, and a standing-room-only crowd is not only necessary, but expected. Last year’s performance of Damn Yankees drew Globe Theater-esque crowds, and the acting did not disappoint. This year, the same core group of actors is back in action, along with some talented new additions from within the school and outside, aiming to wow the world once again. What is the play about, you may ask? I do not wish to tell you specifics, my reader, for I want everyone to come and see the spectacular show for them-selves. Howevah, as Mr. Thomasy would say, I will say that it is an action-packed adventure of young man aiming to climb the ladder that is business, while en-countering numerous trials and tribulations along the way. Star-ring Tom Keefe ’11, John Barrack ’11, and Louis Heck ’11, the play is stacked with an All-Star cast that received multiple awards

Drama Club to Perform in NovemberBy Sean Frazzette ‘11 at last year’s winter drama

festival. John Barrack ’11 said, “I think this may be the best cast we’ve had in all my six years of doing drama at this school.” Having a titanic cast of around thirty kids, the play contains all sorts of students, ranging from 7th graders to seniors, and also includes a few girls from Montrose School and Ursuline Academy. The pit crew for the music adds even more Arrows to the cast, creating an energet-ic atmosphere, eager to perfect each facet of the play. From the hilarious to the serious to the romantic, this production has it all. “It’s pretty much like morn-ing chapel,” says Lou Heck ’11. “You have your funny stuff, your dull stuff, and your average everyday announcements. It’s kind of a potpourri of random things that make a great script.” Not only does the play have a great script, but drummer Peter Cimini ’12 also explains that the music is classic: “Picture an AC/DC concert crossed with a Taylor Swift CD crossed with the Lion King. This is the stuff of legends.” With such high praise from the actors and the pit, How to Succeed looks like a play for the ages. Besides the main char-acters, the productions features background and minor char-acters that further excite the action on stage. Including the likes of Marlon Matthews ’14 and Bobby “Dad/Bobby Flakes” Wright ’12, the chorus and minor characters make the play what it is—an instant classic. A scene never goes by without a witty remark or an inane facial expression by some random character from the background that will make you fall out of

your seat and onto the wooden floor of Ward Hall in laughter. The choir also provides perfect harmonies and vocals that complement the thrilling solos of the stars in the play. Over-all, the complement of main characters as well as minor and ensemble members only adds to the brilliance of this musical. So there you have it. This play will be more epic than The Odyssey, more bildung-sroman-y than Huck Finn, and more satirical than Don Quix-ote. The production offers more than any novel can, and even more than most plays can. From dancing to singing to joking, the production of How to Suc-ceed in Business Without Really Trying will be the talk of the town for decades. The great-grandsons of the actors in it will know their ancestors were part of something unbelievable. So, my readers, I repeat, we must have everyone come to the production once it airs on November 5th and 6th. I know that it is still a month away, but reserve the first weekend of the eleventh month of the year 2010 solely for this event. Damn Yankees had a crowd greater than any play we had put on for a long time, yet this play will be bigger, better, and funnier than anything you have ever seen, so we have to double that crowd at least. I encourage everyone who reads this to come and bring everyone they know; a standing room only crowd is what we expect, and it is up to all of you to gather up the par-ticipants. Pretend as if this were Homecoming of a hockey game against Belmont Hill. I promise you that How to Succeed will not disappoint.

“The Town”: A Wicked Good MovieBy Shane McDonald ‘14Over the past several years Boston has become a movie hot-spot. Directors like Ben Affleck and Martin Scorcese have released great films that attract many viewers and have won several awards. Movies like Gone Baby Gone and The Departed have paved the way for the new Boston flick, The Town. Affleck’s new film does not disappoint, and received 4 stars from critics at movies.com. Based on Chuck Hogan’s “Prince of Thieves,”, The Town takes place in the Irish- American enclave of the Charlestown section of Boston. Charlestown is a known blue-collar “rough and ready” environment. As the movie begins the opening credits foreshadow the rest of the movie. There are quotes from Boston police about the people of Charlestown and how bank robbery is handed down as a profession from fa-ther to son almost like a tradi-tion. As well as being the di-rector, Affleck also takes the role of the movies main char-acter, Doug MacRay. Mac-Ray is the leader of his gang of Charlestown bank robbers that consists of Albert Ma-glone (Slaine Jenkins), James “Jem” Coughlin (Jeremy Renner), and Desmond Elden (Owen Burke), all whom are childhood friends who have grown into bank robbers. When the movie begins you are imme-diately are introduced to its fast pace. You immersed into a robbery scene that unfolds to reveal the plot of the rest of the movie. The first scene is action-packed and is the first bank robbery scene of the movie. After robbing a local Charlestown bank, the gang abducts the bank teller Clair Keesey (Rebecca Hall). The gang releases her into safety,

but not after telling her that if she cooperates with the FBI, they will kill her. Jem man-ages to steal Keesey’s I.D., and suggests that he stalks her to watch if she is work-ing with the police. MacRay takes the initiative and meets Keesey at a laundry-mat. Soon enough, they fall for each other but MacRay takes caution in revealing his past to her. Special FBI Agent Frawley (John Hamm) is determined to undermine the gang, making it his top prior-ity to bring them to justice. MacRay’s life takes on a new meeting after meeting Keesey and wishes to leave his trou-bled past in Charlestown and start a new beginning with her in Florida. After several meetings with the FBI, they decide to put out surveillance on her and learn that she is seeing MacRay. Frawley breaks the news to Keesey that her new boyfriend is actually a criminal, and part of the team of robbers that abducted her. She is devas-tated by the news and tells MacRay never to come back to see her. MacRay’s heart is broken by his girlfriend’s sadness and decides that his life change is imminent. He decides that he needs to leave immediately, but is quick to find out that it is not easy to leave Charlestown. MacRay is forced into one final final job by the threats of Fergie Colm (Pete Postlethwaite), the gang’s chief of plan-ning their heists. The crew is assigned to perform a major heist of Fenway Park. This heist is the climax of the whole film, and the pinnacle of the movie. This heist is almost like a farewell to MacRay and it feels as though this is going to be the last of his robbery days before moving on to a

better future. He is hopeful that it will go well, but there is a feeling lingering that the plan will fail. The FBI gains information about the rob-bery, and the stage is set for an epic ending. “The Town” is a fabu-lous movie that the people of Boston should be proud of. However, it portrays Charles-town in ways that might not be appropriate anymore. Yes, Charlestown can be gritty and has its violent past, but the new “yuppie” invasion has brought life to the city and Charlestown is optimis-tic for a bright future. After the end credits roll, Affleck apologizes to the people of Charlestown for the misin-terpretation of their people. This apology is not made until 5 or 7 minutes after the movie has ended, and most of the crowd has left the theater. I feel as though this apology is mistimed, and should be made when the movie ends so that the crowd can under-stand that the grit of Charles-town is dramatized for the purposes of Hollywood.

All in all, The Town is a brilliant film that is a must see. If you are from Boston, you will love watching the scenes filmed on location. The local accents in the movie are realistic, proudly show-ing that Affleck knows a real Boston accent from a fake one. Maybe Affleck has more Boston films in his future. I don’t think that it is a disap-pointment for Affleck that he might be painted as only a “Boston filmmaker”. There could be worse criticism. After all, maybe Boston needs a director to tell the stories of their city. In “The Town”, Affleck is at his finest and will not disappoint.

For those who may have wondered who was behind the microphone sing-ing the national anthem at homecoming, it was none other than Mr. James Keefe, St. Sebastian’s graduate from the class of 2002, who joined the faculty of St. Sebastian’s this fall. Mr. Keefe is a strong participator of theater and signing. Mr. Keefe is currently working with singers in the school, most notably in the fall musi-cal, How to Succeed In Business Without Really Trying. He also hopes to possibly start an a’ cappella group in the future. Mr. Keefe continues his inter-est in music outside of school, as he is the lead singer in a rock band called, “T.A.S.T.E.” He is also working on some solo material and currently works with a voice coach to learn and study the art of the human voice. In addition to the-ater and singing, Mr. Keefe assists Mr. Jenkins with the varsity cross-country team, a sport Mr. Keefe participated in while at St. Sebastian’s. Along with cross-country,

Mr. Keefe also hopes to coach basketball in the winter, which was his favorite varsity sport throughout high school. Mr. Keefe grew up in Wellesley, Massachusetts, and came to St. Sebastian’s as an 8th grader. While at-tending St. Sebastian’s, Mr. Keefe was involved in the-ater. His most influential role in theater was his perfor-mance as Robin of the Hood from the play Robin Hood. Mr. Keefe attended Providence College in Rhode Island and majored in Ameri-can Studies. He was a proud “Friar”, active in the “Friar’s Club,” which is a Catholic service organization associ-ated with the College. While in the Friar’s Club, Mr. Keefe worked with the admissions, and also gave food to home-less people of the Providence area. Upon graduat-ing from Providence College, Mr. Keefe managed commer-cial real estate in downtown Boston at One Beacon Street. He was exposed to many situations while managing the high rise on the edge of Beacon Hill and ultimately benefited from the experi-ence; however, Mr. Keefe did not feel he was on the right

path for a job. He felt his career needed to shift back on to the track of teaching, and after having graduated from St. Sebastian’s, he knew about the school and it’s commu-nity, and what opportunities the school had to offer. Mr. Keefe expressed to me how blessed he feels to be back at St. Sebastian,’s working with what he calls the ‘trifecta’ -- the wonderful students, families, and faculty he loved as a student here. “It is a lot different being a teacher than being a student, but it definitely helps to be a former student because I am able to better connect with the stu-dents because I have been in their shoes,” said Mr. Keefe. In his first year at St. Sebas-tian’s as a teacher, Mr. Keefe has taken on four classes to teach. He is teaching three eighth-grade religion classes and one seventh-grade sci-ence class. “I am very excited to be here and very blessed to be back in this wonderful community and engaging young minds with great po-tential”, said Mr. Keefe.

Arrows Trivia

Mr. Keefe Adds a Little “TASTE” to Seb’s!By Peter Breslin ‘13

Mr. Keefe belts one of TASTE’s ill jams. “Fallin”, maybe? Hope this helps with what’s to the right.

Another new feature in every Walrus this year will be St. Sebs TRIVIA! Below, we’ve listed three questions every Ar-row should know the answer to. So here’s what to do: write down the answers, tell us your name, and drop this section in the Walrus box in Room 215 for a special prize drawing. Question 1:

A certain faculty member here at Sebs is actively in a rock/funk band.a) Who is it? __________________________b) What is the name of the band? __________________________c) Name one of their songs __________________________

Question 2:

A St. Sebs graduate was recently selected in the Major League Baseball Draft. Who is he, where did he attend college, and which team selected him?______________________ _____________________ ____________

Question 3:

A current St. Sebs teacher once taught another current teacher while both were at Holy Cross. Name this combo: ________________________________

YOUR NAME:_____________________________________________________


What was once a dream is now a reality. The New Science Building is scheduled to be completed during the winter of 2012. In a worst case scenario due to zoning issues, it will be com-pleted in time for the start of school in 2012. The new science building will put St. Sebastian’s science program on the map in comparison to other ISL schools. Besides from being the newest build-ing in the School, the new Science building will offer a large amount of science classrooms, to make sure, that Lab classes never have to meet in other rooms because of space constraints. It will be 30,000 square feet, and when completed will make up about 60% of the school’s total academic space. Not an insignificant addition to the school. Furthermore, the building will be fully air conditioned.

There will be eight new labs, four on each floor, and each science teacher will have his or her own room.

There will be two rooms for each of the four main sci-ences taught at Sebs, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Mid-dle School Science. Along with these eight classrooms, there will be additional math classrooms, as part of the expanded math wing, as well as a specialized integrated learning center for the combi-nation of both Math and the Sciences. This room will be a computer lab devoted just to math and science, so they do not have to use the other computer labs. Also included in the building will be new studios specifically designed for the Rube Goldberg Team, the Middle School Robotics Team, and the Upper School Robotics Team to spread out and get enough space to work in. As it stands today, none of them have the space they need to build all the playing fields and other components for their projects.

The New Science Building will be connected to the rest of the school in the Math Wing, and expand out onto the field, where those

soccer playing kids’ screams used to bother Mr. Nerbonne. Goodbye to wiffleball instead of math class as well. Un-fortunately, room 113, Mr. Tremblay’s room, will be taken over as a passageway to the New Building, and he firmly hopes that he “will not be teaching in a trailer during the 2011-2012 school year.” Assuming all goes as planned, we expect Mr. Tremblay is merely exagger-ating the possibilities here.

An expansion to the library is also in the works. The new section, attached to the current Upper Library, will be around the size of the McCulloch room and will be for silent study only. Everyone knows that the atmosphere of Library can get rather boisterous at times, so this new section will be perfect to get work done in a peaceful environment. I’m sure Father Paris, among oth-ers, is excited for the chance for some quiet space in an otherwise high-spirited room. We look forward to seeing the project develop this year.

New Science Building Breaks Ground This Winter; Anticipation Builds

By Andrew DeMatteo ‘11

Enter Klaus & Schlaegael: German Exchange Students Shed Light on DJ Leithal Weapon

Ja, ich bin Schlaegael. Unt befoh I discovah, foh you, the mystahrie mahn of unt DJ Leithal Veapon, I haf gawt to tell you how this shtahted. Unt nacht in Boshton, Klaus unt I met foh dinnah unt decided to shtart this piece foh the shchool’s newshpapah. We hat ge-thinkin’, ser gut un idea—we will intahview different personas in shchool! Ja! Ja! Unt, Ja! Yay! We hat gotten our firsht subject to spre-chen aboutz. It will gebein eint DJ Leithal Veapon. JA!

Translation: (Before I tell you about this new mystery man named DJ Leithal Weapon, I must tell you how this idea was started. One night in Boston, Edmund and I (Spear)—at dinner with friends—decided to create these psuedonyms and false personas—Klaus and Schlaegael. Then, in a Walrus meet-ing, we decided to interview mysterious others in our school, an idea formulated by Head Writer Ryan Bacic ’11. Enjoy.)

Unt, ja, I vill be da intahviewah foh dees intahview, y unt Klaus vill hat gebeein the intahvoo-ee (einsahm bitte, mein English no ser gut but Messtah Nehrbonne hat ga-zayin that mein deustch es fantastish.)

SS--Unt, Klaus, vehn hat you first ge-zayin (seen) DJ Leithal Veapon?

KM--Untt, ja. I hat ga-sheen him at the tekno dansh lyke…zwei (two) veeks ago.

SS--Unt, who is dis mahn!?

KM--Unt, you no hat ge-knowin?!?! Vell, furst, hish title real is Dahvid Leith, un shenior at St. Se-bashtian Shchool foh boyz. He hat geh-rulen the tanzah with his teccno and funky shades, ja?

SS--Ja, Ja.

KM--UND, he hat geplayin mucho techno musica, and all the boyz and invaited girlz were tanzin’ en el mitte of the floh. Basicala, he is a DJ. A phenohmenoh. Unt un laygend.

SS--Unt, Klaus…vah…Klaus!

KM--Ja, Ja…

SS--Gut. Ehm, vich song hat been your fahvorite?

KM--Purshuit of Shmileyfaces.

SS--Ha, ha, ha, Klaus. Tu hat ge-meanin’ happiness, no?

KM--Lol. Unt yah.

SS--Ja, gut.

KM--Gut.

SS--Unt, I havin’ onet moh queshtion foh you, sah…how does Mistah Veapon fit in with amigos at Schvienstagger’s?

KM--Unt ser gut question. I am eggshpert aht friends and friends en el shule. Well, unt, jah. Mistah DJ, just by his pehfect shtyle and shvagger, is quite populah amongst his Gehrman friends. Also, Mistah Leithal hat given advayce to the schule community to chug much a vahta—poland shprings of cawse—at the tanze, and that hat gehelpin’ his shule shpirit and, ipso facto, hish populahrity.

SS--Groit, groit. Gdanke Klaus!

KM--Unt jah! I am going to head bahck to univehsity dohm!

By KLAUS MEHFI ‘11 unt SCHLAEGAEL SPHEE ‘11

The Rare Questionnaire

Celebrity Look-Alike

The only difference between these two young men are the devastating drives and the deft short game.Mr. Teddy Mead Mr. Rory McIlroy

Senior Year: College, Stress, CopingBY TOM KEEFE ‘11

SENIOR EDITOR

Oh, hello! I don't have much time but I suppose I can spare a few moments. What's that? You wanna hear what it’s like to be a senior? Aight, let’s see...well this week, for example, was a busy one. Since midquar-ters closed last Friday, teachers were eager to dish out a hearty serving of tests, papers, and quizzes. There was the deriva-tives test, the paper on Socrates' theory of death, the essay on the theme of cleansing in Crime & Punishment, and the test on the first 100 lines of Cicero's Som-nium Scipionis, "The Dream of Scipio". On top of that, the SATs, were on October 9th, so many seniors were cramming the books to score high. Some stu-dents attempted to boost their scores, while others tackled the test for the first time. All these layers of ache-ademia combined to provide many late nights for seniors this week. It would be a very inadequate profile of the life of a senior to leave out the realm of extracurricular. After school, I worked on senior video, Wal-rus, Schola, and attempted to squeeze in time for extra help and SADD. Then I scampered across the street to Cross Coun-try practice, where twenty fellow Arrows and myself ran through woods and around reservoirs. It was always exciting to see which curb Coach Jenkins or

Coach Keefe would run over on each particular expedition. Afterwards, play practice time. There, I ran scenes and worked on songs from the show with the pit. Frisbee games played a large part in this endeavor, as well as wondering what food Jack Goldman '11 would order from Dominoes. By the way, “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” is com-ing along very nicely. The talent is really there this year and the cast is enormous. Everyone should attend, especially be-cause admission is free and the cast now has brand-spankin'-new mikes. The seniors involved would like to go out with a bang. Oh, and lest I forget, the good ol’ college applications. Most kids are applying to sev-eral schools early, either early-action (non-binding) or early decision (binding). Everyone is slogging through their essays and common application, not to mention supplements, re-sumes, and recommendations. Fortunately, there are many amazing faculty at St Sebas-tian's school who can generate great recs. For seniors, the best approach is to keep matters simple and approach them one day at a time, one facet of the application process at a time. Getting work done early is nev-er a bad thing. I would rather not delve into much details about my college search, but I am sure that if you are curious, Scott "Cherub/

By Alex Spear ‘11 H E A D E D I T O R

Napoleon/Cupcake" Smith '11 would not hesitate to fill you in on his college quest. Yum, so much frosting. Above all, the factor that completes the profile for the St. Sebastian's senior is the social scene. During these stressful times, camaraderie has become that much more important. A bunch of us se-niors have started a fantasy football team, and my crew, B.B.S (“Body By Sharon”) has compiled a nice 5-0 record and looks to conquer the league (knock on wood). Everything—lunch table conversations, lively debates between pop-tarts and toaster strudel, rousing renditions of "Oh Freedom" on the mini-bus, and classroom antics are gems that compliment the overall St. Sebastian's experi-ence. For what is education if you learn alone? So now, I must gear up for another week of work. Sim-ply put, we seniors are living the dream. Just taking it one week at a time. Hard to imag-ine, but about two months from now we will be staring at a gaping Christmas break, two weeks of glorious time away from work and studies. Until then, we savor the present. Must I quoteth the sage Virgil? Forsan et haec olim meminisse iuvabit. Perhaps one day it will be pleasing to have remem-bered these things.


POINT and COUNTERPOINT Toaster Strudel Pop Tarts

Name that Teacher This issue’s mystery teacher hails from Newton, Massachusetts. In high school, this teacher enjoyed cooking, reading, and managing the hockey and baseball teams. It was a “thoroughly enjoyable” high school experience. His shoe size is roughly 8 ½ , and the eyes are a deep shade of brown.

Should this teacher be banished to a deserted island, he would bring along pasta and lots of Classical music (especially from the Baroque period), but NOT movies, because he does not care for them. In his or her first year as a teacher, this individual crafted an answer sheet for a test, but lost it. They made a new one, and after grading all the tests, discovered to their chagrin that their original answer sheet received a measly grade of 84%!

Know who the mystery teacher is yet? One last tasty tidbit: this teacher’s favorite day is Monday, because there are still four more days of school left to look forward to.

WHO IS IT????

You may have to do some detective work. Once you think you know the mystery teacher, cut out the section below and summit it in the drop off box in Mr. Drummond’s room (215) for a prize drawing!

I, _____________________________________________, am a boss and am ready to try for my prize.

The mystery teacher for this issue is __________________________________________. YEE-HAW!

When comparing a toaster strudel to a pop tart, I found that toaster strudels are significantly better in every aspect. If you’ve never had a toaster strudel, have one right now before reading this. If you like pop tarts better than toaster strudels, then you have awful taste in everything…or maybe I can convince you otherwise. So, let’s get into it.

The toaster strudel is an elegant luxury, a delight-ful taste sensation that warms the soul. It has a fluffy, flaky crust, with sweet smooth frosting and a delicious filling to your preference. It comes in the following flavors: apple, apple cream cheese, blueberry, Boston cream pie, cinnamon, cream cheese & strawberry, cherry, Danish style cream cheese,

s’mores, raspberry, strawber-ry, and wildberry. He’s just so happy. You can also draw your own designs with the icing on toaster strudels. Are you kidding me? Culi-nary art? It doesn’t get any better than that. You can draw whatever you want. You can even use two icing packets on one toaster strudel. You have the freedom to be creative. Pop-tarts don’t let you do anything. You just eat them. There’s no creativity, no fun of writing your name, making a happy face, or drawing the classic checkerboard. There’s

no freedom. They’re a mod-ern form of communism. I’ve seen pictures of Stalin eating pop tarts. They simply don’t deliver.

Pop tarts are bland. They have a dry crust, dry frosting, and are less filling than a toaster strudel. In the morning, I want a meal to keep me going. Not with pop tarts. They’re crumby, liter-ally and figuratively. They make a mess every time you try to eat them, the crumbs spilling everywhere. Gross. They have less filling, less matter, less happiness. You have to have a drink with them so that you can wash them down. Can’t they be somewhat moist? If you don’t have a drink while you’re eating pop tarts, you may die from choking. They’re a hazard. Toaster strudels have

flaky crust and that gooey middle filling that’s warm and sweet. They go great with a glass of cold milk, but if you have no drink, they’re just as delicious. It’s like comparing steak to McDonald’s ham-burgers. Steak is a privilege, steak is amazing, and those McDonald’s hamburgers…aren’t actual meat. Toaster strudels are a delicacy, while pop tarts are hard and dry and plain. Chuck Norris eats toaster strudels. He told me. Plus, have you recently seen the pop tart commercials? They’re cartoons! They don’t

even have the dignity to show what a real pop tart looks like. There’re just a bunch of demonic animated kids danc-ing around. That kid’s head is way too big for his body any-way. His mom clearly doesn’t love him (the pop tart is in his

BY SAM RACINE ‘11

left hand).

“Thanks for the pop-tart mom! I hate my life!”

Have you ever wondered why no one likes you? Why life is such a drag? Why people look at you and their day gets im-mediately worse? It’s because you eat pop tarts. There’s no debate. It’s not even a matter of opinion, it’s simply that toaster strudels are better. They taste like they were made by a person, not a man-ufacturing process. People are going to complain that toaster strudels are more money, but this is false. A package of pop tart out of the vending ma-chine in the lounge is $1.25 and includes two pastries. A box of six toaster strudels is $2.99, so the cost per pastry for a toaster strudel is less. Also, people may argue that they’re better because they’re more accessible, like in the lounge. This just degrades the food even more. Pop tarts are on the bottom shelf, with lonely baked chips or fruit snacks…just embarrassing. Eat toaster strudels. Then, people will like you.

For those of you who don’t know, a pop tart is a food created by God that we are all blessed to have the opportunity to consume. Unfortunately, as with any-

thing created so perfectly, there are fakes and replicas that are not nearly as good. A toaster strudel is just that. Try as it might to stack up to, or even surpass, the pop tart, the toaster strudel always has been and always will be a second class breakfast food. If you have ever watched televi-sion in the past three to five years you have most likely seen a toaster strudel com-mercial. These commercials are completely slanderous filth, being more inaccurate than Fox News. In the com-mercials, some kid would give another kid who had a pop tart a toaster strudel, and the kid would throw out the pop tart. What kid in their right mind would ever throw out a vastly superior pop tart? The atrocities do not end here, though, as they also show a toaster strudel with frosting to the nasty and mouth-drying wafer perfect-ly. This is completely unre-alistic. Anyone who has ever had a toaster strudel knows what a pain it is to even at-tempt to put the frosting on.

Trying to squeeze out the frosting out of its pastry bag is such a hassle. First,

it’s way too hard to get the frosting out, and then out of nowhere it comes out far too fast (not to mention the fact that it gets caught to the frosting tip, forcing you to shake the frosting off). Before you know it, you may have some strudel frosting on your leg, on the kitchen floor, or worst of all in your mom’s hair. Then when you finally are able to get the frosting out it inevitably does not look nearly as good as the com-mercials do with their false advertising, and for the most part there is only frosting on one half of the pastry. As a result the half that you do not have frosting on leaves your mouth more dry than an en-tire day in the Sahara would do. If a glass of OJ or apple juice isn’t readily available, you could have a major prob-lem. A final problem of the frosting of the toaster strudel comes for anyone who wishes to eat on the go, especially for a driver. As the driver’s situ-ation goes, the stomach starts to growl, and if the driver wants to stop its growling with a toaster strudel, he must do something that is far more dangerous than any text or phone call, which is look-ing down to apply the frost-ing. They should put a ban on toaster strudeling while driv-ing in the new texting bill. In fact, toaster strudels are the leading cause in all breakfast-food-driving-related deaths. A pop tart would have saved their life. The application of the toaster strudel frosting is bad enough, but the fact of the matter is that in general the pop tart frosting is just better in every way, shape, and form. In many cases, it has sprinkles or very cool designs, and in all cases it covers almost the entirety of the pastry. You do not once have to worry about applying it, spilling it, or crashing your car because of it.

The frosting is only one of the many factors that make a pop tart infinitely better than the toaster stru-del. Question: How many flavors of toaster strudel are there? Answer: 12, none of which, appear to be any-thing interesting or out of the ordinary. Question: How

many flavors of pop tarts are there? Answer: 62 current ones, with an additional 22 that were discontinued, many of which are unique and would fill any person with much delight. The flavors of pop tarts also have themes, and change with the seasons; toaster strudels cannot say the same. Pop tarts have themes with the seasons such as gingerbread for Christmas, Choc-O-Lanterns for Hal-loween, and pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving, just to name a few. Who wouldn’t want a pop tart like that during the depths of winter? Toaster strudels, however, are very festive, and fill everyone with delight with the fact that they stay the exact same and con-tinue to have boring flavors like Raspberry and Apple. Mmmm, that really gets me in the mood for the upcom-ing holidays. Toaster strudels seem not to care at all about what goes on around them, and, rather than attempting to bring joy to the faces of children, they instead try to put them to sleep with their mundane flavors and lack of juxtaposition to the times and seasons.

Pop tarts are better cold and are better warm. A toaster strudel truly can-not under any circumstances be eaten cold. For the most part if the toaster strudel is not toasted, it will instead be frozen, and therefore cannot be consumed at all. Not all of us have the time to wait 3 minutes for a strudel to be toasted in the wee hours of the morning. Pop tarts do not have this same problem, as they can be eaten without be-ing toasted and still have that magnificent taste. In fact, pop tarts even make flavors that are meant to be eaten cold, such as ice cream sundae, created to be a dessert rather than a breakfast food. Is there anything pop tarts can’t do? They even sell t-shirts; yet again toaster strudels cannot any under any circumstances say the same. Pop tarts are truly a gift from God, and we should thank Him for them each and every day, and we should never anger Him by buying fake rip-offs like toaster strudels.

Word on the street is that Tom Murphy’s favorite Pop Tart is Meow-Berry

BY TOM MURPHY ‘11


The first quarter of the Patriots’ season is now complete, and one thing is clear: anything is still possible. Is the real Pa-triots’ defense the Super Bowl ready one we saw on Monday night, or the group that did not show up for the Buffalo Bills (giv-ing up 30 points to the Bills is unacceptable)? For the defense, Patrick Chung appears to be emerging in his second year in the NFL with a punt and field goal block that both led to touchdowns in the Dolphins game, and, just for good measure, added an inter-ception returned for a touch-down to his game resume. On the other hand, he did not play consistently in weeks 1-3, which makes you wonder how fluky this game may have been. The linebackers have played very well so far between Rob Ninkov-ich (1 sack, 2 interceptions), Je-rod Mayo (1 sack), Gary Guyton (1 interception returned for a touchdown), Tully Banta-Cain (1.5 sacks), and Brandon Spikes, all of whom have been defen-

sive leaders so far. The defense will look to them for leadership, especially the Patriots second-ary, which has not been able to perform well except for in the Dolphins game (average of 27 points per game, not counting that Monday night game). The questions about the offense span the same spectrum. Tom Brady led the offense well in Week 1 against the Cincinnati Bengals but the team forgot how to score for the second half of the Jets game, and the first of the Miami game Week 4. Wes Welker has done well in his return to the team, and Brandon Tate has also played well most notably showing large amounts of explosiveness with a kickoff re-turn for a touchdown in weeks 1 and 4. The biggest news for the Patriots was definitely trad-ing Randy Moss to the Vikings, which, on the surface, may not seem like a fantastic move, but Tate has huge potential and there are rumors begin-ning to circulate that Moss’s replacement may end up being current San Diego wide receiver

Vincent Jackson, so for now, it may be a good idea to keep an eye on Tate as he is currently going to become Randy Moss’s replacement. In the end, will Tom Brady decide Woodhead, Woodpecker, or just “Woody” when it comes to new Patriot’s running back Danny Wood-head’s nickname, as he will have to fill in for Kevin Faulk (on IR with a torn ACL) and could be an instrumental part of the offense thanks to the loss of Faulk. He should try to find a nickname that will stick any-way, because Woodhead will definitely be a bigger part of the offense than anyone could have ever predicted. In conclusion, what we now for sure is that we have no idea who the Patriots of 2010 are, but with the first quarter done, the possibilities are endless, but I believe, after looking at the schedules of all the teams of the NFL, that the Patriots will ultimately fall a game short of the Super Bowl, losing to the New York Jets in New Meadowlands Stadium in New York. Let’s hope I’m wrong.

Moss-less Pats Look to Conquer NFLBy Jack Goldman ‘14

The 2010 season ended for the Red Sox on October 3rd, marking both the first time we’ve missed the playoffs and the first time we haven’t broken the 90-win barrier since 2006. It’s easy enough to point out what went wrong, as the myriad unlucky injuries suffered by key Sox contributors over the course of the season were, despite a valiant effort, just too much to overcome. Perhaps you’d point to the lack of a truly fearsome hitter in our lineup that the other team has to always really worry about, or the struggles of pitchers not named Buccholz, Lester, or Bard.Fine. Sure. Whatever.The only problem is, this year, I just didn’t care. And, judging by the 36% drop in viewership rat-ings for the Sox from last season to this season, I’m not alone. If you want to call me and the others who have stopped making a nightly ritual out of Sox games bad fans, go right ahead. Maybe we deserve it. In the end, it’s a more com-plicated issue than one might think. When I was talking with a friend of mine from the Phila-delphia area over the summer, we got onto the subject of baseball, and he naturally asked me what I thought about how the Sox were doing this year. I responded, essentially, that I didn’t have any real opinion on it. When he skeptically asked why that was, I responded that after having rode the frustrat-ing ups and downs of fruitless Sox seasons year after year, then finally getting that World Series title we’d been seeking for so long and winning it all again three years later, the “novelty” of being a Red Sox fan just kind of got worn out to me. My friend, in response, just laughed. “Is this what fans are like in Boston?” he asked incredulously. Obviously, I’d like to say no, but for many people—although certainly far from all—it is sadly true. In my eyes, Red Sox Nation up through 2007 appeared to be driven primarily by its unity in wanting to absolve our team of the Curse forever rather than by a true and lasting love of the franchise itself. We had sustained ourselves so long on our eternal thirst for an elusive championship, and in ’04 we finally got it. Then, in 2007, we did it again. Now what? What more did we as fans have to see our beloved team through? We had proven ourselves, silenced our doubters, and achieved the one goal fans all over New Eng-land had been praying about for countless Octobers as the playoffs whipped into high gear each year.While I view this accomplish-ment of a goal that was long-awaited as the main source

of a number of Boston’s fans “abandoning” the team, there are also several factors in my opinion that stem directly from this. First, somewhere along the line, perhaps the “novelty” of being a Sox fan wore off. As oftentimes happens in the case of an indie band with a cult following that suddenly hits it big, it just doesn’t feel as “cool” to be a Sox fan anymore now that so many “pink hat fans,” as ESPN columnist Bill Simmons refers to them, have hopped on the bandwagon. As they get on, some of us inevitably have to get off. That’s the way it goes.Second among these is the fact that to many, the sport of baseball is just too long, boring and action-less to be able to sit through more than a couple of innings. Take this and add in the fact that the regular season lasts 162 games, and it’s fair to say that a good number of people are figuring that they won’t be missing a heck of a lot by skipping most of those and watching only the last few weeks of the regular season and the playoffs. When we had such an extreme motivation for watching, such an all-consum-ing desire for the great victory that had eluded our grasp for so long, things were different. Sure, the season may be long, we thought, but wouldn’t it all be worth it in the end if the Sox were to be able to finally pull it off? With this objective in mind, we put up with all of the boring and tiresome aspects of “America’s pastime.” Now, having achieved what seemed like would never happen to our supposedly curse club, the impetus to turn to NESN for a Tuesday night Sox-Orioles matchup is not even close to as strong as it may have been a few years ago.Another thing that has played a part in the devolution of Sox in-terest in the post-2007 era is its clear, direct comparison to the Patriots and Celtics. Football games may typically last a good deal longer than the average baseball game, but it would be hard to make the case that baseball games are even close to the other two in terms of excitement and action. In base-ball there are no pivotal fourth-down conversions, helmet-toss-ing hits, fierce rejections in the paint, or crowd-riling chants of “DE-FENSE” to keep everyone alert, involved, and interested. Add in the fact that both of these two sports boast shorter seasons—thus making each individual game significantly more important than it is in baseball, especially in the case of 16-game football seasons—as well as the fact that both the Celtics and Pats have been bet-ter than the Sox over the past two years. It’s no wonder why

more and more Red Sox games are going unwatched by previ-ous diehard fans. When you put it up next to faster, more action-oriented sports like foot-ball and basketball without the classic backdrop of perennial underdog looking to make it to the top, Sox games don’t quite stand up to the test.Maybe, though, there are oth-ers out there who find them-selves having lost interest in the Sox but would say that it’s not due to a lack of true motivation, bandwagon-jumpers, boredom, or comparison to other faster. In this case, perhaps it’s the make-up of the team itself. In 2004 we fell for the team that famously branded themselves “The Idiots,” a scrappy, over-achieving ballclub comprised of a blue-collar group of play-ers who courageously fought against the Evil Empire in the classic battle of good vs. evil. Since that time, though, we’ve lost Manny, Pedro, Damon and his iconic beard, Kevin Mil-lar, Trot Nixon, Dave Roberts, Schilling and his bloody sock, and always dependable and underrated reliever Mike Timlin. Former Sox demigod Nomar Garciaparra was gone halfway through that season, and we haven’t been stable at short ever since his replacement, Orlando Cabrera. We may still have Youkilis, but to be honest, that’s just about it. Ortiz, while still putting up good numbers in terms of homers and RBIs, is only a shade of his former monster self, Papelbon looks like he’s done in Boston, and captain Jason Varitek has been reduced to the Doug Maribelli role of every-fifth-day guy. Since ’04 we’ve gained new guys to root for, Pedroia and cancer survivor Jon Lester in particular, but the overall feel-ing regarding the team just isn’t the same to me anymore. The old group that heroically came back from that 3-0 ALCS hole was such compelling theater, and it was almost impossible to not turn the television on whenever they were playing. We were glued to each game, always wondering what they would do next, whether this year would actually be the year, as we had tried to convince our-selves every season for as long as each of us could remember. In the end, it’s tough to de-scribe. Whatever the cause may be of this new disinterest in the Sox, it’s certainly sad to witness and, above all, to experience. I wish that I could get myself back to how I felt about the team prior to 2004, back to the days when baseball was religion and the word of Don Orsillo and Jerry Remy was gos-pel. This season, I just couldn’t get up for it. I wish that weren’t true. But it is.

Woe to Sox: Why Viewership DroppedRyan Bacic ‘11

Arrows Cross Country is off to a great start in the 2010 season. This year's team is one of the largest in St. Sebastian's history, boasting new recruits that round out the squad to nineteen. With 10 seniors, 4 of whom are running in the top five, there is a wealth of leader-ship to ensure a successful sea-son. Returning runners include Captain Will Adams, seniors Tom Murphy, Andrew DeMatteo, Sean Sullivan, Nick Cortese, Sam Racine, and Robbie Spencer, as well as junior Terry O’Connor. They are joined by new seniors Will Vietze and Chris Warner, as well as a crew of sophomores in-cluding Mickey Adams, Peter De-Matteo, Anthony McIntyre, Matt Fachetti, Luke Scotten, Mike Haley, Joe Tamburello, and Eddie McCarthy. We also welcomed a new assistant coach, Mr. Keefe, to the running community. Every runner proved his potential in our first race of the season, as we were victorious

over Lexington Christian Acad-emy with a score of 44-15. At our next race we faced Thayer, Milton Academy, and Gover-nor's, and managed to defeat Thayer, but unfortunately fell to Milton and Governor's. This loss was especially frustrating because of a timing issue that left the team no time to warm up. Despite these disappoint-ing results, however, we hope to redeem ourselves at the ISL Championships. After the dis-couraging cancellation of our Homecoming race on October 1st, we kept our heads held high and travelled to North Andover to race Brooks, Nobles, and Lawrence Academy, claim-ing wins over both Brooks and Lawrence. We were able to achieve these wins due to the top five, who formed a strong core by running in a pack. This year's team is one that requires a great deal hard work and determination from each member. The gap

between the top runner and the seventh runner is a measly one minute, showing that any varsity competitor on the team can affect the outcome of the race. For example, in the race at Brooks, Andrew DeMatteo ‘11 came in seventh place on the team, and Robbie Spencer came in 5th; however, at the next race at St. Paul’s, DeMatteo rose to 4th place and Spencer to 1st. This is great news for Arrows Cross Country, as we clearly have the potential to achieve tremendous success by the end of the season, so long as every runner works with his teammates to shave seconds off his final time. When asked about his goals for the season, Coach Jenkins replied, "I would like to see four of our guys break 18 minutes by the ISL championship race." This is cer-tainly a realistic target. With the strong effort from every runner on the team, we hope to make this a season to remember.

Cross Country Delivers Speedy UpdateBy Robbie Spencer ‘11 & Chris Warner ‘11

1.) Don’t be upset if the fries go in your ketchup. No matter what angle you give your plate, the fries will still manage to sneak in there somehow. Don’t take it personally; it happens to everyone. 2.) Be careful who you try to cut in the lunch line. Just be extra sure that you have snuck around a senior, and not Mr. Cressotti. And if you did in fact cut him, be sure to check out his red socks and ask him for a tip or two about golfing.3.) Don’t be afraid to approach David “DJ Leithal Weapon” Leith ’11. He likes to think he is a celebrity, and he loves when people come and ask him for autographs. Just make sure to call him “Rohan,” or else he won’t sign anything.4.) Make use of Math Lab. On a serious note, Math Lab is incredibly clutch. If you are struggling or just need some extra practice, the teachers are in there to help. National Honor Society members are also going to be in there on a daily basis. Mr. Palmaccio can help you with anything, and even give you the week’s weather forecast while you’re there.5.) Become friendly with Mr. Nerbonne. Mike “The Son of Kelly” Nerbonne can really bring it. Having a friend high up on the ladder may not seem too important at the moment, but it very well may come back to haunt you if you’re not close with “Nerbana”.6.) Tell Mr. Thomasy that you are a huge supporter of the recently created Tea Party. He would love to talk it over with you, and share some of his ideas with you. But seriously, I probably wouldn’t.7.) Hide your drink when you enter the library. Father Paris will always take your water or Gato-rade or whatever you have. He has an absolute stash, and he will finish your drink no problem when you turn around for even a few seconds.8.) Don’t make eye contact with seniors for more than three seconds. Know your place, it won’t make you any tougher and/or stronger. Seriously…you’ll turn into a statue as if you’ve seen Medusa and the Gorgon, which is not fun for anybody.9.) Don’t ever leave your backpack or blazer (or anything) unwatched for more than a minute. Odds are, upon your return you will have a nice nugget to go along with any fries you might be carrying. Have fun returning your backpack to normal. Or, have fun having no blazer for quite some time, only to find it upon a fellow classmate three years later at graduation.10.) Ask Doug Kingsley ’12 to teach you how to dougie. Soulja Boy taught Kingsley first hand, and Doug is an expert on the dance. He would be more than happy to teach you a few steps that you could rip out at any semi-formal. Maybe you can even kick someone in the shins and have him gingerly limp off the dance floor -- shout out to a certain senior at the ‘08 Freshman Semi.

HEY, WHERE’S PERRY?In each issue of The Walrus, Dillon Ecclesine will be hiding a min-iature picture of Perry the Platypus from King Drummy’s favorite show, “Phineas and Ferb”. He could be anywhere: in an article, in another picture, and so on. The possibilities are endless! So remember to look for Perry in each new issue. Can you find the picture hidden in this month’s edition of The Walrus?

SOCCER SEASON(Continued from Page 8)

3-2 Arrow loss. Rivers scored first due to an Arrow failure to clear the ball out the zone. Kerr earned himself a penalty kick later in the first, and coolly tied the game for the Arrows. Moments later, a bouncing ball came the feet of a Red Wings striker, and he hit a missile top shelf—a well-earned strike. Halftime commenced and terminated, and a little under halfway through the second half, the Arrows earned a free kick from about twenty-five yards out. Kerr lined up to serve a ball into the box, when all of the sudden he ripped a frozen rope into the top-right corner of the net. The parents went bonkers, and the Arrows had the momentum. They had so many chances to

take the lead, but Rivers played tough defense. Nearing the final whistle, a crossed Rivers ball connected to the head of a Riv-ers striker, who flicked a soaring ball over Piersiak’s head, giving Rivers the game-winning goal. Shaking off two tough losses, the Arrows prepared hard for Homecoming…and gave a mas-sive crowd what they deserved. A younger BB&N team battled the Arrows well all through the first half, which ended in a nil-nil tie, but the second half was all Arrows. Around the 60th minute, Kerr found the back of the net on beautiful assists from Kevin Dillon and Matt Angelico. In front of the fans, Kerr slid on his knees into the corner and was mauled by his ecstatic teammates. Twenty minutes later, Callanan flicked a serve into the bottom right-hand corner of the net and the Arrows blew the roof off the

athletic center, the arts cen-ter, the Birmingham academic building, and St. Bartholomew’s church—the field and the fans erupted. Callanan showed off his bow-and-arrow cellie, and the remaining ten minutes were devoted to lockdown mode. The defense squelched a hurried BB&N team and took Homecom-ing. That following Wednesday, a rainy, sloppy day couldn’t hold the boys back—they gave Gov-ernor’s a nice butt-kicking and sent them back to an hour bus ride to think about a 4-nil Arrows victory. The Arrows are steam-rolling right now and the ISL better watch out. Come out and watch the Arrows play…fans are always phenomenal fuel for a game. The turnout at homecom-ing was great, and we promise more celebrations if fans con-tinue to show up for our games.

Top 10 Must-Knows for New StudentsBy Dillon Ecclesine ‘11, SENIOR EDITOR

ARROWS SPORTSSt. Sebastian’s School October 2010Vol LXIV, No. 1

Varsity ResultsVarsity Football:

Vs. Nobles 12-6 W

Vs. BB&N 6-28 L

Varsity Soccer:

Vs. Governor’s 4-0 W

Vs. Rivers 3-2 L

Vs. BB&N 2-0 W

Cross Country: Vs. Milton 2-0 W

Quad at Milton 1W, 2L

Quad at Brooks 2W, 1L

Dual at St. Pauls 1L

Quad at Belmont Hill 3L

The St. Sebastian’s varsity football team led by Coach Souza and captains Brian Strachan and Connor Wiik have begun the 2010 season with both one win against Nobles and one loss to BB&N, but con-tinue to have high expectations and drive for success in the ISL. For the St. Sebastian’s football program, the offseason is an emphasis. This summer before the 2010 fall football season, the captains stressed the importance of preparation. They held captain’s practice twice a week for two hours. Many players also attended at least one football camp if not more, such as New England Elite, Boston College, Dart-mouth, and Bay State. First year coach and trainer, Coach Soivilien worked with several players over the summer, in-cluding Austin Franchi ‘12, Alex Venditti ‘12, Pat McLaughlin ‘12, Henry Kennedy ‘13, and Dan Aisenberg ‘11. With the season approaching, double sessions started September 2nd. At the start of practice, the team’s youth was evident. “Physically, we’re a small team with many young players play-ing key role positions,” said head coach, Bob Souza. The team as a whole seems under-sized but especially the offen-sive and defensive line, where size is such an emphasis. “We might not be the biggest line, but we’re probably the mean-est,” said junior center, Austin Franchi. In addition, several juniors are finding themselves at starting positions and even sophomores and freshmen are seeing significant playing time, such as Patrick Healy ‘13, Brian O’Malley ‘13, and Connor Strachan ‘14. Despite the team’s lack of size and inexperience, Coach Soivilien speaks for the rest of the team and coaching staff when saying there is cer-tainly a high expectation of the team to “be very competitive.” With that being said, in order to have a successful season, the team, as Coach Souza states, “has to play with a lot of confi-dence and faith in each other.” The St. Sebastian’s varsity football team had four pre-season scrimmages against Roxbury Latin, St. Mark’s, Tabor, and Lawrence Academy. Scrim-mages against Roxbury Latin and St. Mark’s were controlled; the teams simply switched from offense to defense each ten plays. St. Sebastian’s had success against Tabor, an out of league opponent, and lost in their scrimmage to Lawrence Academy, the defending ISL

The 2010 St. Sebastian’s Varsity Soccer team is off to a solid start, compiling an opening record of 3-2 (2-2 in the ISL). There is a copious amount of informa-tion to fill the readers with, so I’ll start with the coaches and players. Then—the part you’re all waiting for—we will get to the games and who scored and who dangled and who took the Rivers goalie top dog. The Arrows are com-manded by Head Coach Mr. Chris Lynch and Assistant Coach Mr. Schell, who preach—every day at practice—that the team must play as a unit and play quick, high-tempo football. “Play the way you face” sits in the back of every ‘Arrowhead’—simply be-cause Coach Lynch promises the team victory if they play…well, the way they face. Coach Schell devotes practice time to whip-ping the goalies into shape, run-ning the three troopers through intense, quick, agility-stressed drills. Now the players. The Red and Black are comprised of eigh-teen footballers—ten seniors, four juniors, and four sopho-mores. The Arrows, per usual, play a 4-1-4-1 formation, which means there are four defend-ers, a defensive mid-fielder, four mid-fielders, and one forward (for the non-aficionados). Start-ing up front as the lone striker, Charlie Callanan ’11 has already netted three goals this season, and he has done so with quick touches and speed. Sophomore John Real, also a striker, has been outstanding off the bench in his first year on the team—against Governor’s Academy, Real buried a loose ball late in the contest to cap off a 4-nil Arrow victory. In the mid-field, George Price ’13 has been holding down the fort while playing some striker in certain situations. Although he hasn’t netted any of his own yet, his selfless soccer sets up his teammates for chances and goals in every offensive posses-sion. Also playing left-midfield, Ryan Bacic ’11 has been put-ting in some physical, scrappy efforts and played fantastically against Governer’s—he wrung the woodwork on a pretty, hook-ing ball. Junior Matt Angelico has been playing on the left and right sides of the mid-field during the initial games of the season, and his touch teamed with his ability to move the ball has been unmatched thus far. On the right side of the mid-field, Nick Creegan ’11 is the x-factor. The Arrows frequently rely on Creegs to collect and serve balls played to the right offensive flank, and he does so multiple times every game. He also draws fouls like no other—a nice tool every team needs. Alternating in as a right mid-fielder, James Cerra ’11 adds heavy pressure to opposing backs and moves the ball very well with the central middies. Against Lexington Christian, James nutmegged his oppos-ing midfielder while facing the opposite direction, spun around, and made a nice pass. As Tommy Allen would say, “That was sick”. The Arrows’ central mid-fielders are arguably the best duo in the league. Senior Captains Dillon Kerr and Zane Stanton own the middle of the field game in and game out. Playing more as an offensive middie, Kerr plays beautiful balls to streaking forwards and finds the net him-self—he’s got four goals already. Stanton wins practically every ball for the Arrows in the middle of the field through tackling and winning the ball in the air. Zane Rooney, in addition to his fantas-

Champs. Through the pro-gression of the pre-season, the defense has seen improve-ments. “In the beginning of the season, running a new defense requires some adjust-ment to positions and calls. I feel that the team defensively has gotten comfortable with responsibilities and more confident in making plays and being aggressive in tackling,” said Defensive Coordinator Mr. Dan Burke. Additionally, the offense has made lucid strides of improvement, especially in the receiver position. With some inexperience at the position, the receivers have proved to be effective thus far in the season. “I think we are faster than we were last year for receivers, but last year we had more height,” said Ken-dall Dardy-Jones ‘12, a junior receiver. The improvements both defensively and offen-sively have seemed to dimin-ish the inexperience of the team and further the team’s potential for success. The varsity football team had its season opener on September 25th against Nobles, defeating the Bull-dogs in a 12-6 victory. At the Noble and Greenough Parents’ Weekend, the Arrows opened the game with a successful of-fensive drive. However, the of-fense couldn’t finish the drive and their push was halted inside the red-zone. The of-fense was ultimately successful in their second drive; captain and senior quarterback, Brian Strachan ‘11, finished the drive with a one-yard run for a touchdown. In the second half, Strachan added a second touchdown, running 60-yards to the end zone. By the end of the game, Strachan finished with two rushing touchdowns and led the team with 147 yards on the ground. The defense proved to be strong throughout the game. Just before the half, they immo-bilized the Nobles offense in the red-zone. Over the course of the game, they held the high-powered rushing game of Nobles to only six points. Finally, the St. Sebastian’s of-fense was able to run the final 8:41 off of the clock to seal their first victory of the season. In the next week’s matchup against BB&N, St. Sebastian’s lost their home-coming game, 28-6, unable to stop the BB&N run game and finish their offensive drives with scores. “We knew they had a big running back and a physical offensive line, so we needed to use our speed to

try to beat them. However, we couldn’t match up physically one on one,” said Coach Burke. Accordingly, on defense, the BB&N running back and offen-sive line were able to out muscle the St. Sebastian’s defense. On the other side of the ball, the offense struggled to score, despite their ability to move the ball successfully on the BB&N defense. “We simply weren’t able to finish drives. And, we had things that could have gone our way, but didn’t,” said Coach Souza. As a result, the St. Sebas-tian’s Homecoming was the first loss of the season for the varsity football team. St. Sebastian’s football has struggled so far with injuries and the health of the team, especially to heavily contribut-ing players. Jordan Perry, senior receiver and defensive back, is likely out for the season with a concussion. Perry started both ways and provided the team with speed and much needed experience. The team will certainly miss his presence on the field. Charles Conigliaro ‘11, senior running back and outside linebacker, was out for the game against BB&N with a concussion as well. However, fortunately for the team, Conigliaro will return for the Milton Academy game the following week. Finally, Connor Strachan, freshman in-side linebacker, had to also miss the homecoming game due to mono. The time of his return is uncertain. However, not all is bad coming off the tough loss for the football team. The St. Sebas-tian’s squad has refocused their efforts on the rest of the season with help from their head coach. “I have a short memory when it comes to losses. I can’t dwell on the losses during the season,” said Coach Souza. The focus in practice has become “not stop-ping ourselves” and “finishing drives,” as Coach Souza states. The players have all begun to rally behind the captains, as well. “I know there are some skeptics who don’t think our team is going to finish very well this year because of our small size, and especially because we lost to BB&N at Homecom-ing. Last year we started off the season in the same way, 1-1, and we ended up finishing the season 6-2. That means that this year we can at least go 6-2 again, and I think we could even make 7-1,” said senior captain, Connor Wiik. So, despite the apparent dearth of physical size and experience, the Arrows’ varsity football team moves forward with determination to prove their initial expectations valid.

Football Kicks Off New SeasonBy Tyler Sweeney ‘12

tic mid-field play, buried a goal of his own against Governor’s, which proved the game-winner in the Arrows’ shutout. Play-ing perhaps the most difficult, clustered, and indirect position on the pitch, Tim Stoddard ’11 takes his spot as the Arrows’ defensive midfielder. Tim’s jobs consist of clogging up the open lanes on the field, helping out the defenders, and supporting the midfielders. He usually has to mark the largest adversary. Since his return from a minor leg injury at the opening of the season, the Arrows have two straight shutout wins with Timmy in that position. Moving to the back four, five main players occupy the defensive unit. On the left, Kevin Dillon ’12 has made an official transition from midfield to defense, and he makes very smart plays, moves the ball well side-to-side, and marks well. On the right side of the back four, Tommy Allen ’12 not only has speed and size, but is quick and powerful. Tommy possesses the ball well and usually dangles around a few opposing middies before playing nice balls to the attackers. Also alternating in as an outside back, Senior John Fee has some serious dangles for a defenseman and moves the ball well. Dillon, Allen, and Fee enhance the Arrow attack when they make overlapping runs to the attacking corners—a threat that makes the Arrows lethal. The two center-backs, Junior Chris Nadeau and senior Captain Alex Spear, do not get as many touches during the game because of playing in the center, but their communication and tackling are their biggest assets. The duo in the center work ex-tremely well together—Nadeau attacks the ball carrier fiercely in order to slow up the attack, while Spear usually marks the streak-ing forward and makes sure all opponents on the flanks are marked. With the combination of Tim Stoddard ‘11 and the five backs, it is very difficult to pen-etrate through the defensive wall and attack goal. In the past two games, the Arrows have allowed a total of three shots on net. The Arrows also have a strong foundation with three solid keepers-- Ben Piersiak ’13, Teddy Mead ’11, and Ryan Wolfs-berg ’13. Ben has been lights-out so far as the starting keeper. He

already has three shutouts this season. His communication, ag-gression, and impressive reflexes are invaluable. Teddy Mead ’11, the Arrows’ second goalie, has been a major contributor this season—although Teddy hasn’t seen playing time yet, he makes phenomenal saves during prac-tices, which means he’s always ready for game-time situations. Wolfsberg, very recently return-ing from a hand injury, is starting to rehabilitate and is taking reps during practice—for a player just coming back from injury, Ryan looks great so far. Also, the Arrows would like to thank sophomore Julian Matra for his work as the team’s manager. Team morale is at its peak right now, and the Arrows are on a roll. They started of the year in mid-season form against non-ISL opponent Lexington Christian Academy. The midfield dominated the turf throughout the game, and the first goal of the season was notched by a low strike from Kerr off of a penalty kick drawn by Creegan. Near-ing halftime, Callanan buried the cushioning goal. The Arrows possessed the ball the entire first half, but LCA took over during first ten minutes of the second half. The Arrows held off the opponents for those chaotic ten minutes and then settled down to finish off a stellar opening match. A week later, the Arrows scooted over to Nobles for a tense, evenly-matched game. Nobles’ set-pieces dominated the first half, but the Arrows’ back four and Piersiak shut down the chances. Callanan had an op-portunity to give the Arrows the lead as the seconds ticked away in the first half, but a very, very skilled Nobles keeper stuffed Charlie. The second half opened, and a tough adversary of a Nobles striker got the best of the Arrow defense—he gave Nobles the lead around the 60th minute of the match. The Arrows had multiple opportunities to score, but the Nobles goalie made impressive saves. A fluke goal in the 80th minute gave the Bull-dogs a 2-nil lead, and the score remained. That Wednesday, the Red and Black ventured to Weston, Massachusetts to scare off a small, fast, and skilled Rivers team, and the match ended in a

(Continued on Pg. 7)

V. Soccer Gathering SteamBy Alex Spear ‘11 SENIOR EDITOR

Vs. Milton 7-21 L

Vs. Nobles 2-0 L

Charles Conigliaro ‘11 carries the rock close to the goal line, much to the dismay of number 44.

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The WALRUS - St. Sebastian's SchoolThe WALRUS The time has come, the Walrus said, to talk of many things: Of shoes and ships and sealing wax, of cabbages and kings. - Lewis Carroll