DO show up for school because, despite popular belief, your attendance is still mandatory as a senior. If you’re not showing up because of your overwhelming love for the smell of fresh pencil shavings in the morning, at least show up for your dedicated teachers who, because of you and your 10 or more other absent classmates, are forced to teach a class of 10 or fewer students.
DON’T procrastinate. We know you’ve heard it many times before, and we totally get how amazing an afternoon on Carmel’s sunny, second semester beach sounds, but let’s take a reality check. We understand the occasional day-late assignment, but when it comes to a week’s worth of unwritten literature responses, we promise that you will regret your decision more than Jennifer Lopez on the Grammys red carpet.
DO use your allotted lunch time to venture off into the real world where food is plentiful, though mildly expensive, with your merry band of friends to accompany you. Realize that you don’t have to spend all of your time kissing up to teachers during your off-campus golden half-hour, and you can take a break from the mess of lectures and class work that we call a school day to enjoy some of the fresh food and air that the surrounding Monterey Peninsula offers.
DON’T forget sunscreen as you make your way down to the beach. As awesome as showing up to school looking like one of the lobsters off of The Amanda Show sounds, you will not only be berated by the many teachers whose classes you probably did not complete your homework for, but you will also most likely be forced to sit through a lecture from your mother regarding the dangers of skin cancer and how awful you look in the color red. It is astronomically important to remember to pack protection against that fierce Carmel, Calif., sun that threatens to pan fry your baby soft skin.
DO participate in class. Though senioritis may take hold at home when you can’t seem to start your homework, don’t let it get you down during class. Keep in mind that as sleep deprived as you feel, and as pointless as lectures may seem, once your grades plummet, so do any plans you have of going to your dream college. Though senior year may seem like a walk in the proverbial park, do not be surprised when you look at your Aeries grade book to witness the horror of hundreds of menacing, red-highlighted assignments and six or seven F’s.
