EDITOR’S NOTE: Last year, Jacob Clemen wrote about his experiences as a Hopkins High School senior and a college search that led him to the University of Kanasas. Clemen checked back in when he returned home for this year’s winter break to share how his first semester went. *** The New Year provides a great opportunity to reflect on the experiences of the past year.  For me, 2011 was a time of great change and growth as I moved on from home and high school to Kansas and college.   Moving in was a nervous experience—from the moment I realized I would be gone from my house for five months to …

This past week may have been the most eventful, exciting and satisfying weeks of my young life. I had my last days of school, found out my final grades of high school, had my graduation ceremony and party and attended the all-night senior party. Through my own baseball lens, the week went a little something like this. The back and forth game had me tired as there were highs and lows throughout the journey. There were close calls at the plate, homerun robbing catches and dazzling diving stops. These were the times that homework was not done the morning of class or when an assignment  had …

On this Memorial Day night, on a much appreciated day off from school, I will do the last homework of my high school life. When I scribble the last number onto my stats sheet, I will have finished the last of my after-school busy work. What a great feeling it is to finally be able to say that I am reaching the “lasts” of high school. I had my last Monday and Friday of school last week and will have my last full day Tuesday. This time next week, I will probably have been awake for a mere handful of hours with little worry greater than finding the most efficient way to prepare a meal. This week…

Perhaps it's the fact that memorial weekend is this weekend, or maybe it's because I'm able to finally say it's the last Friday or last Monday of high school, but I have begun to reminisce about the experiences of my pre-collegiate schooling. When I think back to my first year at high school, I remember being intimidated by how large it was and how many people were there. I rode the bus to school every day because neither I nor my friends had cars yet and would move from class to class without making any stops to chat in the hallway. I was too afraid of being late to be social in between …

For the past three years, my high school experience has been determined by the weekly wait for Saturday, the countdown to extended breaks and the last month before the annual summer reprieve. Now I am finally able to look not only look toward summer break, but also the final conclusion of my pre-collegiate schooling. I will have entire days to travel, read, spend time with friends, work to put away money for college and all the other activities I was unable to do during the school year. Unfortunately, the upcoming weeks will still be difficult. I need my grades to go up to meet my standards …

Senior prom is one of, if not the, top high school event before graduation. I had the fortune this past weekend to experience Hopkins 2011 prom. After attending last year, I had the idea that I did not need—or really want—to attend prom this year. I was not thrilled at the prospect of spending the money, time and emotional effort that comes with the dance and did not feel as if I would miss out on the experience, having attended last year. But on a cool breezy evening at Target Field, I was assigned to break a coworker in the dugout section and was hustling down there because I was a little …

As with any big decision, after I made the choice to commit to Kansas as my destination in the quest for higher learning I began to mull over my decision and question whether it was truly the correct one. I really couldn’t think of any good reasons that it wasn’t a good decision but still a tiny shred of doubt remained buried in my subconscious. I began to wonder if I would manage being so far from home or whether I really would enjoy the size of the big Lawrence campus. I wondered whether I would be able to get the same opportunities as another institution upon graduation. Fortunately, an …

Transition has been a major theme of this column—much as it is in my life—and now, more noticeably than ever, that feeling of transition is displaying itself in very tangible forms. This past week, I received several e-mails from the University of Kansas alerting me that I can begin to sign up for clubs and intramural sports. The list of activities that I can do is extremely long, and I will need to begin sorting through my options to see what will define my extracurricular lifestyle next year. I already have my sights set on the club baseball team, and I imagine I will also participate in as…

Editor’s note: Going away to college is a time of excitement and anxiety, independence and absence. It’s a moment in life that touches the parents as acutely as it does the graduating senior—perhaps more so. In this three-part special edition of Bottom of the 12th, columnist Jacob Clemen and his parents each reflect upon the joys and difficulties of senior year. Bill Clemen recalls the urgency he felt for his son to complete the requisite college paperwork—even as he sees Jacob as a hard worker more prepared for college than he was. Janet Clemen discusses her worries that Jacob’s missteps at …

In my philosophy class—a fourth quarter senior elective death trap of concentration and effort—we are learning about identity. We are asked the question, “What are your essential qualities?”—or what qualities about Jacob make Jacob the person that the people around me know? “Being a licensed driver, being a legal U.S citizen and proud owner of a Joe Mauer giveaway bat,” I joked in an effort to draw a chuckle from my neighbor. Obviously these things are not crucial to my makeup, and I would still go on living a basically normal life (although not being an American citizen would be a …

I have heard myself say it a couple of times in frustration: “I’m going to really miss Jacob, but I’m not going to miss some things about him.” We are coming down to the finish line. It’s just around the corner, and we have a great sense that there is still so much more that we want to infuse into our oldest child to prepare him for success on his own. How will he manage financially if he won’t live on a budget? How will he live respectfully with others when he won’t pick up after himself? How will this major procrastinator survive without someone to keep reminding him of deadlines? We make …

Jacob’s senior year is racing by now. The big decisions have been made: college, major, housing. I feel Jacob did well in identifying what his true interests are and in evaluating colleges that fit. The J-school (journalism school) at KU wins.  I was able to go on several college visits with him. I was impressed with the way he represented himself in the meetings with college representatives—how he asked questions about things important to him and not just superficial stuff. He truly tried to learn about school traditions, student life and academic support. That is why I am confident he has …

In a teenager’s life, responsibilities abound. From homework to jobs to household chores, my fellow peers and I have a lot going on—and just about all of us value sleeping in and taking leisure time to watch Jersey Shore, play Xbox, go to concerts and kill time with each other. So why then would someone who has four rigorous classes and two jobs, is trying to do more writing, needs to finish preparing for college and has parents who are early starters on yardwork take on the responsibility of being a manager for the lacrosse team? The answer lies in my own experience. I recently began my …

Today marks the end of spring break 2011—an unfortunate day of the year. I will now be sitting in class twiddling my thumbs, doodling whatever random scenes pop into my head and abusing group work time to chat with my friends. I anticipate that a bit of a spring break “hangover” will make this first week back, or at least the first several days, not very productive—as is the case with most breaks. If I, in fact, have a lapse in productivity, it will be in stark contrast to last week. Although spring break is a vacation from school and an excuse to forget all responsibility, there were still …

Not much good happens after midnight. When the clock signals a brand new day, Cinderella becomes just another peasant girl, Mogwais turn into Gremlins and every sort of unspeakable evil comes out. Last night, I made the decision to brave the early hours of Friday morning and ignored the implied 12 p.m. bedtime that pop culture tells us is vital for survival. I made this decision in spite of the fact that Jay Leno’s guest told the story of how his father never let him have a sleepover because, “Nothing good happens after midnight.” I believe that my decision worked out well, despite the …

As many of you know, the Hopkins Royals are being represented by both their boys and girls basketball teams in the state tournament. As I write this, I am watching the girls take on Eden Prairie for the class AAAA championship on television. (Editors note: Hopkins won the championship. You can read more here.) As a sports fan, there is very little that gives me more school pride than athletic achievements.  Not only is it fun to have an exciting and competitive sports team to follow through a winning season, it gives me a way to connect with and take pride in my school. This year has been …

As I do most weekends, I spent this Friday evening hanging out with my friends, hot tubbing, playing Dance Central and chatting. I enjoyed the time greatly but noticed that something was different. It wasn’t the faces or the personalities (although there was a delightful new addition to our group, the cousin of one of my close friends), nor was it the activities or the enthusiasm for fun. The main difference in our interactions Friday and over the course of this school year is that we are all beginning to pull away from each other little by little. This trend is seen in the increasing amount …

While searching the MLB.com homepage over the past two weeks for updates on the Twins, I noticed a link that asked, “Is watching baseball your dream job?” I could not help but think, “Why, yes, it is!” My hope is to become a sports journalist and, more specifically, to write about baseball. Watching baseball is truly my dream job, and I have great hope that I will one day be able to live my dream. I strongly believe that having this goal in front of me is indicative of the spirit of high schoolers. We are driven by the idea that we can improve our standing in life and accomplish all the goals…

As we grow up, we all go through trials and experience events that act as markers of our age. They are the significant events that come with moving to the next stage of our lives—our first R-rated movie, our driver’s license, graduation, first time at the casino, first alcoholic beverage and college diploma. Between each one, we mature and prepare to handle the responsibilities and reap the rewards of the next marker. This past year I have made great strides in my growth from a kid to a young adult and have had the good fortunate to reach several milestones. I reached the magical age of 18 …

In the game Chutes and Ladders, players try to reach the top of the gameboard by climbing ladders and avoiding slides that send them back toward the bottom. Unfortunately, in my game I have hit the notorious “senior slide.” The third quarter of the school year may seem early talk about the senior slide, but it would be irresponsible not to acknowledge that it is upon me. I have spent too many late nights scrambling to finish homework assignments and power study for tests. I normally do not become very stressed out with school work. But now each online homework assignment, each review sheet …