CHRISTMAS BY CANDLELIGHT

The stage was flanked by two beautiful, pine-smelling Christmas trees, brightly adorned in miniature twinkle lights. Visions of the Northern Lights danced on the screen behind the two trees as the magic of the Christmas By Candlelight concerts unfolded. The performers were handsomely attired in suits and fine evening-wear, music was performed to the point of absolute perfection and Brentwood’s magnificent T. Gil Bunch Centre for the Performing Arts was filled to the brim with an eager audience for both the two concerts on Friday 26th November and Friday 3rd December. The first of these was largely attended by visiting parents who were at the school for both parent/teacher interviews and the concert, whereas the December 3rd concert was open to the public.

Performers included the Junior and Senior concert bands, the Jazz Ensemble and the Senior Chamber Choir in addition to various soloists both instrumental and vocal. There were also appearances by the Christmas Fairy, Mrs. Edna Widenmaier, who was quite a vision in her sparkly pink fairy dress and lacey wings. The concerts certainly welcomed the holiday season to the Brentwood campus and put the prodigious talent of musical students on display for all.

Story by: Ellen Kutscher(Grade 12)

PARTY TIME

Despite the festive title of the event, it was a much quieter and more thoughtful group that climbed aboard the yellow school bus for the return trip to Brentwood. The PARTY program, born from the grief and frustration of a group of doctors and nurses in Toronto who had grown tried of the rash of preventable deaths that affects teenagers across Canada, is an acronym for Prevent Alcohol Related Trauma in Youth. As a educational program that reaches into the community, PARTY soon spread nation-wide until it spread into the Cowichan Valley Hospital and Brentwood College School. Starting at noon, Grade 11 students under the watchful eye of Mrs. Andrea Felix moved through a realistic presentation in three parts: a crash, the morgue, and a rehabilitation centre. To portray the severity of the

Before the trauma: at the hospital.

Actress Esther Beauregard with a back injury.

presentation, on-site pictures of victims and vehicles continually flashed on a projector screen.

A car from a local crash combined with two off-duty paramedics created the first station. The students were shown the two soccer ball sized indentations in the windshield created by the force of a human head slamming forward — a very belittling sight as one student remarked. In line with the crash, a typical emergency response was outlined complete with a student volunteer strapped to a back brace and rushed to the trauma room. Once there, the students met with a team of nurses who covered the procedure of stabilising a crash victim. Watching the barely human body covered with bruises, blood and a multitude of tubing and plastic medical equipment, many students forgot that the woman lying so still on the hospital bed was acted by Mrs. Felix.

The final step in the journey of a crash victim is the rehabilitation centre, the third stop for the Grade 11's. Here, students experienced the immense frustration of opening a juice box with a simulated concussion and the loss of use of hands (teeth came in very handy!). Next, a police officer handed out beer goggles in both a simulation of the legal limit and in excess. Gales of laughter regaled the stumbles as students attempted to walk a straight line and sit in a chair. Other activities included signing a cheque with a brain injury and doing up buttons without the uses of fingers.

After a long day, students gathered to hear the final presentation given by a crash survivor who had lost her best friend. The emotional topic was covered by a woman who implored the use of good judgment without pointing fingers. As pictures of her friend played on the screen, students reflected the impact of their potential choices on their loved ones.

Johannes Buchling attempts to do up his shirt
with a button hook.

Henning Lange walking the line.

Jonathan Dunstan with less than perfect handwriting.

Kai Wang determined to open the juice box.

Back at school, the Grade 11 class met in small groups facilitated by a SPARC member to discuss the ramifications of the day, before heading off to supper.

Through a complete range of emotion, from nausea at the realistic depiction, to laughter at the activities, to sadness over the shared stories, the class were left with their thoughts. Interesting and informative were two key words that popped up as well as desensitised, a feeling that can be directly attributed to the influence of Hollywood movies. Though, as one student argued, the knowledge that yes, this was real made the presentation more powerful.

Story and pictures by: Andrea Norlund (Grade 11)

A BRENTWOOD MIDNIGHT ON ICE

Snowball. The first formal dance of the year. This annual event, put on by the Grad Council, is the opportunity for juniors to ask seniors to be their dates. Getting that perfect date hung over many a juniors head like a dark rain cloud. The most approachable of seniors were snatched up quickly, thus having to deprive the gaggles of groupies of their company, for there could only be one (date, that is). Snowball was indeed a night of best efforts. Best efforts to get dates, look good, eat lots and have fun.

In preparation for this fabulous evening, girls disappeared hours before the sit-down dinner, forever on the prowl for the most flattering of dresses and hair styles. Boys, on the contrary, took five minutes to get dressed, most of which was spent searching for paired socks. In the spirit of formality, dates arrived at the doors looking smart, accompanied by dozens of bouquets, chocolates and corsages to adorn the lovely ladies.

Couples paraded from the Houses to the cafeteria with the most thoughtful of dates carrying with them the best weapon against Mother Nature: umbrellas. Entering through the cafeteria doors, one found the most regal of atmospheres. A feast fit for Thanksgiving was prepared just for student enjoyment.

After dining on turkey and Nanaimo bars, students stampeded to the icy gym for the dance. Although dancing in dresses and ties proved to be difficult, the level of energy never dropped. It did, however, reach it's peak during "The Final Countdown," a popular song among the male Grade 12's.

By eleven that evening, all that remained were the burst balloons and empty couches. Hopefully, everyone will carry the memory of the night until the grand event returns this time next year.

Story and pictures by: Jennalee Desjardins (Grade 12)

ICE, ICE BABY

Down the creaking stairs and down a shifty corridor in the old academic block, a shadowy figure lurks in a doorway. They eye their target in the office; a red a white box tucked neatly under his desk…
“Hey… Mr Nichols,” they say in an urgent, but hushed whisper. “You got any ice?”

Ice?

Once again, Mr. Garth Nichols’ “secret” Psychology 12 class are conducting a racy experiment.

What does ice, and yes, ice in the literal sense of frozen water, have to do with Psychology? That is what many students were asking themselves last Tuesday as Mr. Nichols proposed they start their new experiment immediately. All willing Psychology students, from Tuesday until they “died” on Friday, were addicted to ice.

“Your drug of choice is ice cubes” the worksheet read. Water used to be able to do it for you, but, as in real addictions, you developed a tolerance for water, and now you need, at least one solid cube in every beverage you drink to keep you going. How hard could it be? Well to makes things a little more difficult, the rest of the school, or “normies”, could not be privy to their compulsive consumption. Addiction isn’t something to be advertised, even when it is to ice cubes, so keeping it a secret from close friends, teachers, house parents, even their roommate

Katie Jackman endures her 72 hours on ice

was compulsory. But what about the physical signs of addiction? Each student had to give themselves a visible sign of their addiction; ICE written across the wrist. Tuesday morning was a bit of a shock to some people, not being able to finish bottles of water they had with them and trying to figure out where to get their next “fix”. But many people forgot the experiment by the time cookie break rolled around, filling cups with milk and mugs with steaming hot chocolate. It was a little suspicious when one student, with almost no obvious connection to the other, asked if there was any ice in their tea. Some teachers demanded that “scribble” be washed off hands, and people laughed curiously at the single word printed on the addicts’ hands.

The second day, things began coming more naturally; get this morning’s water bottle out of the freezer, put this afternoon’s in now; ask the cafeteria ladies to slip some ice into a bowl along with your eggs; but suspicion was rising.

One objective of the experiment accomplished; getting into a mind set of dependence. For many people it came down to the choice of forgoing beverage, or take the time and energy to walk back to the house. Subjects who chose to go without suffered from withdrawal symptoms; thirst. Some of the “normies” figured out immediately there was something going on when ice appeared in cafeteria glasses, a conspicuous sight for this campus. The curious tried to find connections between people, trying to find coinciding sports, classes, spares, anything to figure out the mysterious obsession with ice.

On the third day, the addicts (hypothetically) died and were allowed to share their experiences. On Friday night Mr. Nichols and many ex-addicts enjoyed their first cup of tea in three gruelling days.

The experiment illustrated the secretive nature of addiction, as well as the constant thought and time dedicated to one. Most students, however, agreed that, while many people do drugs for some sort of physiological escape, ice did not offer any sense of euphoria and so the experiment was in that way flawed. Not one Psychology 12 student has found themselves still addicted (that we know of….). Many students found that, despite the lack of exhilaration ice provided, they could relate better to the idea of addiction. The addicts were related to as “Mr. Nichol’s secret psychology club” which was, despite the tragic lack of handshake and not so secretive meeting times, what most people found to be the case. “Ice actually became a sort of social thing.” Berit Anderson admitted. It gave students new people to hang out with and relate to, who they perhaps wouldn’t normally. This phenomenon is seen commonly with smoking and the idea of smoking socially, and it is under that pretence that many teenagers start smoking in the first place. The constant planning and thought that went into the ice addiction was something that people with addiction do truly have to face; what happens when there are only two cubes left in your tray and you know they aren’t going to last all the way through your sport? Planning ahead to get ice or suffering going without a beverage was a mental choice many people made. “I don’t have the energy or time to go get ice when I’m already in the cafeteria, so now I’m just thirsty!” Claire Dickens griped at some point during the addiction.

Many students felt that the experiment did give them a better insight into a topic that had been previously little thought on, but at the same time students admit that no amount of simulation can accurately express the pain associated with true addiction.

Story and pictures by: Sydney Black (Grade 12)

A HISTORY OF GINGERBREAD!

Currently on the Brentwood campus, a contest is underway between the seven residential houses. A Gingerbread House competition is keeping students busy this week as they prepare for the final judging at the Christmas Luncheon next Wednesday; and while we do not yet know who will walk away with the prize Gingerbread House, we can learn about the history of gingerbread treats, and their place and importance during Christmas time.

Surprisingly, gingerbread has been baked in Europe since the 11th century. In some regions, it came in dark, thick squares of bread, served with whipped cream and lemon sauce, while some served it as a flat, crisp cookie or a spiced cake. The origin of the word comes from the latin word for this ginger spice, "zingebar." A later adaptation of the word was used in the Old French who called it "gingebras." The word gingerbread simply means, preserved ginger. Ginger was found to have a special preservative quality when mixed in with breads and pastries, which probably led to the development of ginger cakes, breads and cookies. In the beginning, Gingerbread was most commonly found at fairgrounds. Many fairs were known as "gingerbread fairs" where gingerbread could be bought and sold as gifts for others. Unmarried women would eat gingerbread "husbands" at fairs to bring them luck in finding a husband. Certain cookie shapes became associated with different seasons; at "fall fairs," one would find animal and bird shapes, and at "easter fairs," one would find button or flower shapes.

Gingerbread was modernised in the 19th century. When the Grimm brothers were collecting German fairy tales, they stumbled upon the story of Hansel and Gretel, two children who find a gingerbread candy-covered house in the middle of the woods. In modern times, gingerbread appears mostly at Christmas. The German tradition of making gingerbread or "lebkuchen" houses became popular in North America when it was brought over by Northern European settlers. American gingerbread usually consists of fewer spices than the original European recipes, but in Pennsylvania, traditional German gingerbread recipes still hold strong. North America is said to hold the largest variation of gingerbread recipes to date, which makes for unique and tasty gingerbreads at all times of the year, but especially at Christmas!

Story and Pictures by: Amy Weinberg (Grade 12)

TO CAKE OR NOT TO CAKE?

At the end of it all, they gathered at the feet of their leader, and prepared to obey his every whim. His demands could, and would, involve physical discomfort and mental stress, if not outright suffering. Sounds like a cult? Of course: this is a meeting of rowers!

The occasion for which this picture was taken, a celebratory feast, was an annual one. The Cake Race is a time when junior and senior boys and girls are mixed into various boats, told to dress up, and set loose to race against each other. Though some are more fashionably challenged than others, all managed to race quickly and well, skills that are valued in rowers far more than fashion sense.

The faces of their leaders stay shadowed while the masses huddle around them

Unfortunately, their lack in fashion know-how also leads to their downfall as a cult. Cults, if not great at choosing outfits (dude, branding is way out of style!), do manage to synchronise their clothing. These crews, unfortunately, did not quite manage that. Alternatively, they could be portrayed as a hive of ants, working tremendously hard while searching for sustenance. As with ants, there must be some method to their madness, but it is a mystery as to exactly what it is. The only constant seemed to be a certain primeval hunger, an instinct for just where the cake could be found, and what had to be done to get it. This is certainly a positive: when surrounded by water, this desire for food could be channeled into the race, leading to tremendous effort. However, with that barrier removed and their hunger no longer limited, the rowers were impressive in their drive for cake. The sign of a rower: an uncontrollable appetite!

Before we begin searching among the lions and tigers, though, we should recognise that these rowers had just engaged in possibly the most demanding of physical activities, and that their appetites are probably justified. Of course, they could just be cultist ants. One never knows…

Story and pictures by: Nicolas Chesterley (Grade 11)

Dan Bester, unable to row, gives encouragement
to his teammates.

The rewards of a job well done: the trick is to sneak
past the ever watchful guards.

MARINE EXCURSION

The Grade 9 Rogers boys travelled to the Esquimalt Graving Docks Saturday last, to tour a world class container ship. The tour of the Marine Vessel Horizon Anchorage was a rare opportunity to see a 700 foot vessel in dry dock. The graving docks in Victoria were built in the 1920s to accomodate British naval vessels for servicing and emergency repairs. Thanks to a contact of Ben Fortson's, the boys were invited to tour the ship from the bridge 200 feet in the air to the depths of the engine room. The vessel runs containers from Washington State to Alaska supplying the state with all kinds of goods and people's personal belongings. Amazingly, the ship is run with a crew of only 20, one of whom is her Chief Engineer, Bruce Sherman, who escorted the lads, Mr. Yaremchuk and bus driver Reesha Rorison on a personal tour. From the state of the art navigational system, through structural steel beams hundreds of feet long, to the heart of the engine room (even into the three story engine itself!), much was learned about these vessels that ply the world's waters moving goods in the global economy.

Nick Yaremchuk

ICE HOCKEY

Brentwood Ice Hockey Kicks Off the 2004-2005 Season

The Brentwood Ice Hockey program began the season this week with the Juniors playing against Shawnigan Lake School on Friday with the Senior team hitting the ice against Frances Kelsey Secondary School yesterday.

With limited practice time since the start of second term sports, the Junior team hit the ice with a surprising amount of team co-ordination and came away with a 2-2 tie. Led by Captain Ty Siceloff, the team had a good deal of the play and if not for some very good goaltending from Shawnigan the score could have been much higher. Splitting the goaltending duties for Brentwood were Beth Chiasson and Taylor Pears who both played very well. Goal scorers for Brentwood were Ty Siceloff and Javier Alvarez.

The Seniors, backed by key goaltending from David Summers were able to establish a one goal lead early in the game on a shot from Ty Siceloff. After Kelsey tied the score, Sean Foote, a rejuvenated Grade 12 student who has not skated with Brentwood since grade eight, score twice. Brentwood then went up 4 to 1 on a goal by Cory Nathanson. A tenacious Kelsey team chipped away at the lead and were subsequently able to tie the game late in the third period (final score: 4-4).

Although no wins thus far, it is a vast improvement over our start a year ago and the entire coaching staff are very optimistic for our team in the Cowichan Valley League and against other ISA schools.

Mike Flynn

The senior team won their season opener (85-57) against Chemainus. Julian Snellgrove had 21 points, Ben Felix had 12 points and 15 rebounds, Noah Stevens had 14 points, Garett Graeme had 9 points, and Adam Erickson had 9 points.

Clayton Johnston

T. GIL BUNCH CENTRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS

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