The Shield Dec 2022

The Shield

Archbishop Riordan High School presents the 2023 Spring Musical

Based on Sholem Aleichem stories by special permission of Arnold Perl Book by JOSEPH STEIN Music by JERRY BOCK Lyrics by SHELDON HARNICK

Produced on the New York Stage by Harold Prince Original New York Stage Production Directed and Choreographed by JEROME ROBBINS

Dear Reader,

Letter from the Editor in Chief

T h a n k y o u s o m u c h f o r p i c k i n g u p t h e f i r s t e v e r i s s u e o f T h e S h i e l d . W e h o p e y o u e n j o y r e a d i n g t h r o u g h t h e f i r s t e v e r m u l t i m e d i a m a g a z i n e o f A r c h b i s h o p R i o r d a n O u r t e a m h a s w o r k e d h a r d t o m a k e s u r e e v e r y t h i n g i s u p t o s t a n d a r d s . I t h a s b e e n a l o n g f e w m o n t h s o f p l a n n i n g , l e a r n i n g , a n d o f c o u r s e c o n n e c t i n g w i t h e a c h o t h e r

I r e m e m b e r e v e r s i n c e I w a s y o u n g , f li p p i n g t h r o u g h f a s h i o n a n d e d i t o r i a l m a g a z i n e s w a s m y f a v o r i t e p a s t - t i m e . R e a d i n g t h e i n t e r v i e w s a n d s t o r i e s f r o m o t h e r s , a n d a d m i r i n g t h e m u l t i c o l o r e d p a g e s o f p e o p l e , i t e m s , a n d p l a c e s , i t t o o k m e o n a n a d v e n t u r e t h r o u g h i t s p a g e s N o w s e e i n g t h a t I ’ v e m a d e s o m e t h i n g s i m i l a r o f m y o w n i s t r u l y s u c h a g r a t i f y i n g e x p e r i e n c e .

W e h o p e t o e s t a b l i s h s o m e t h i n g n e w a n d u n i q u e t h a t a l l o f y o u w i l l b e p r o u d o f a s m u c h a s w e a r e I a m s o g l a d w e a r e a b l e t o f e a t u r e n e w p e o p l e , s t o r i e s , a n d m e m o r i e s t h a t a l l o f u s c a n r e l a t e t o o n s o m e l e v e l . H o p e f u l l y , a s y o u f l i p t h r o u g h t h e p a g e s , t h e s t o r i e s c o m e a l i v e , a n d e a c h p a g e s h o w s a d i f f e r e n t a s p e c t o f o u r c o m m u n i t y

E v e r y i s s u e w i l l h a v e a d i f f e r e n t t h e m e , a n d d i f f e r e n t s t o r i e s t o t e l l . W e w a n t t o b e a b l e t o r e p r e s e n t e v e r y o n e i n a d i f f e r e n t w a y . T h e m a g a z i n e i s a w a y t o e x p r e s s o u r c r e a t i v i t y o n a d e e p e r l e v e l , i n c l u d i n g c o l l a b o r a t i o n w i t h o t h e r R i o r d a n e n t i t i e s .

A s y o u f l i p t h r o u g h t h e p a g e s , I h o p e y o u c a n e x p l o r e t h e s t o r i e s o n a d e e p e r l e v e l , f i n d i n g m u t u a l i t y w i t h o t h e r s a n d w a t c h i n g t h e v i d e o s o u r e d i t o r s h a v e w o r k e d h a r d o n .

I t h a s b e e n s u r r e a l w o r k i n g o n t h i s p r o j e c t f r o m w h e n i t w a s j u s t a n i d e a , t o n o w w h e n i t f i n a l l y h a s l a u n c h e d

I h o p e y o u e n j o y o u r w o r k a s m u c h a s w e d i d w o r k i n g o n i t . Y

o u r s t r u l y , Angelina Ning '23

Santana

MEET TEAM THE

Angelina Ning

Kai Murguz Paul Ha Art Director

The Shield 2022 Staff

Kushbu Asad '26

Rose Baik '26

Jupiter Bruneman '26

Alex Jia '25

Rey Johnson '26

Myra Kao '23

Amanda Li '25

Edward MacDonald '23

Ivana Maldonado '26

Eva Navarro '26

Julien Untalan '24

Joseph Zuloaga '23

Archbishop Riordan High School 175 Frida Kahlo Way San Francisco, CA 94112 rcrusadernews.com rcrusadernews@riordanhs.org

Susan Sutton Adviser

Eva

By Jameson Datoc ’23

As the age of records, cassette tapes, and mix-tapes are slowly coming to an end, and as their memories slowly disappear in the shadows of society, they are reborn with digitized music and MP3s.

The evolution of music also impacts the most important person at any event, party, or celebration, the Disk Jockey, better known as the DJ.

The DJs evolve with the music, adjusting their styles, equipment, and musical talents to become accustomed to the constantly changing music. But despite all of the new flashy equipment and styles, no one should ever forget the plight of the original DJs.

Henry Lacanlalae ’88 was one of the first waves of DJs when DJing first hit mainstream, and everyone knew someone who was a DJ. Introduced to the art of DJ in 1983, Lacanlalae was inspired to own his own set of DJ equipment at 12 years old.

Of course, this was not an easy task, as DJ equipment cost a great amount of money at the time, and to get started, a DJ would need around $2-3,000.

Today, people may think that is affordable, but those who grew up in the 80s knew this was a small fortune. In fact, it was so much money that it would take away half of the average worker’s monthly paycheck!

“With all the DJ equipment you had to buy, you could buy a brand new car at the time,” Lacanlalae exclaimed.

But after begging his parents for DJ equipment, Lacanlalae finally got a pair of $400 special turntables, the Technic 1200s, that are able to match beats and control the pitch and a Numark mixer that was an additional $200 when he was 16 years old. But for DJs back then, this was only a quarter of the equipment that was needed.

Next came the speakers and the records. Depending on the speakers, it could cost double the amount needed to get started. Not to mention the amplifiers.

“I had mediocre speakers and it cost $1,400!” claimed Lacanlalae. “And that’s only the speakers!”

Then, DJs also had to buy the most important piece: records. Today, records cost around $40-60 a piece, but for DJs back then, records were around 50 cents to a dollar.

“I used to be able to buy 12 records for around $35, and now you could buy all the songs in the world with a monthly pay of a $1.50,” said Lacanlalae.

Records then were cheaper because they were not collectibles; it was strictly used for entertainment and the 7

From vinyl records the art of DJing

records to laptops, of DJing has evolved

artistry of the DJ. The records would be produced in such large numbers and because most songs would not be on the same record, they would be on different records. That meant would have to buy a specific song on a single record, and they wouldn’t just buy one, they would buy two or three of the same record because of how easily the records break.

“I bought two of every record just in case if the record skips, if the record melted, or if the record cracked,” said Lacanlalae. “Now compare this to the DJs today, when all they have to do is boot up a MP5 or a hard drive on their computer and play music from there. They don’t have to worry about skips, melting, cracks, nothing! DJs today have it easy!”

In fact, it is extremely easy for DJs today to run solo. They don’t have to worry about records, the vast amount of black cables, or carrying truck loads of equipment. Also, today’s speakers have plug and play and power speakers with built in amplifiers.

“DJs today only have to bring to a gig their speakers, a controller (modern day turntable), a laptop and an app called serato,” mentioned Angelina Ning, the current DJ club president at Riordan, “which not to mention is extremely affordable compared to the DJ equipment back then, but also extremely mobile.”

But back in the day, DJs could never run their business solo; instead, they would form DJ crews to transport lights, speakers, turntables, and of course hundreds and hundreds of records to their next gig.

Then there’s the gig money. DJs today collect their pay check and move on to their next gig, but with the Lacanlalae DJ crew, all the money would rarely go into their pockets; instead, they would use it for replacement lights, gas, and of course more records to stay current with the music.

“That’s a big reason why many DJs dont DJ for a career, they DJ for the love of the music, they have a passion for DJing,” said Lacanlalae. “It’s an artistic craft of beats, rhythm and sounds creating a sonic bend of music for crowds to enjoy.”

Its the passion of DJing, that makes DJs artists and even with the evolution of records to MP5 files. That burning passion has never dwindled down.

“Some DJs live off their gigs,” added Brian Kosewic, the moderator of the DJ Club, “but the majority just do it for a passion and the love of DJing.”

But, as time went by, all good things came to an end, and for Lacanlalae, he stached away his DJ equipment and retired. The culture of DJing has developed and transformed using digital music in replacement of the records.

But according to Lacanlalae, “No digital music can compare to the sensation of putting a needle to a groove.”

by angelina ning ’23

The bright lights in the dim venue contrast with the shining evening gowns and unique traditional cultural clothing. Delegates stand tall and confident on stage, answering questions on culture and current events.

In many cultures, pageants are a staple in their communities, and are highly revered but also respectable competitions to bring pride and joy to cities and neighborhoods.

This year, Ceejae Minell DeLumen ’24 participated in her first pageant, The Miss Philippine Teen International, and won the Queen title.

Ceejae is not only representing her community, but also paving the way for many of Riordan’s new female students.

“I was very happy for her. It was a pretty big pageant, contestants from all over came to compete. Not only that, she’s the first Riordan student to win a pageant, and it’s really impressive,” explained Armando Castillo, moderator of Latino Unidos and the World Languages Department Chair.

Ceejae spent her July in the sunny Los Angeles-Redondo area.

“We trained for one week before pageant night, which included walking practice and public appearances.”

Ceejae explained how unlike the traditional pageant night, hers was split into two. “July 29th was the prelims and July 30th was the actual coronation.”

On the pageant nights, Ceejae represented the beautiful province of Cavite in the Philippines. Every contestant had to choose a city or province to represent from the

Philippines, as one of their main goals is to promote tourism back to the motherland.

“It’s where my mom’s side of the family grew up, and when my grandma passed away…it was a major thing. I mainly did the pageant for my family and the culture,” explained Ceejae.

Over the years, pageants have evolved from just being beauty based.

“Now, there is more focus on community work, different causes, and the intelligence of the young ladies. There is a big sisterhood that comes with pageants and many of them are all about uplifting women as a whole,” said Melanie Aguas, Class of 2024 counselor and PAC co-moderator.

“I really like the new section with cultural attire. I think it’s a really beautiful way to represent a community,” Aguas added.

Ceejae agreed that one of the best experiences she got out of the pageant was meeting new people and creating new friendships.

“Winning was really surreal, hearing my name and number, I was in awe, I wanted to cry”

-Ceejae Minell DeLumen

StudentS experience

On the week of Nov. 6 to 11, Riordan students attended the annual CloseUp trip to Washington, D.C. This year the students went during the midterm elections to experience politics and listen to both sides of the political spectrum. Students visited many of the museums along the National Mall, The Capitol, and various of the neighborhoods in DC. Take a look at our week long trip!

experience election week cloSeup

By AngelinA ning ’23

A protest took place in front of the Supreme Court as the Justices deliberated the Indian Child Welfare Act.

The Lincoln Memorial is a monument to history and the different races and cultures in our country.

The statues at the Korean War Memorial symbolize the emotions people felt as many lost their lives.

The press conference dinner showcased the midterm elections on Election Day.

Riordan students posed on the steps of the Library of Congress, the national library of the United States.

The White House in all its glory (it’s a lot smaller in real life), the home and office of the President and his family.

The Reflecting Pool at the Lincoln Memorial is a mustsee tourist site to visit when in Washington, D.C.

The bust of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is one of the many important figures in the Rotunda.

Riordan and Serra students listened to speakers from Rep. Jackie Speier’s office.

photos By AngelinA ning ’23, jAmeson dAtoc ’23, & joseph zuloAgA

Killer Performances

Short, Martin, Gomez elevate ‘OMITB’ to top of Hulu charts

By Joseph Zuloaga ’23

What do you get when you put Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez together? An unlikely trio of comedic icons starring in Only Murders in the Building: a New York City comedy-drama production on Hulu.

Debuting in 2021 and set in an Upper West Side apartment building named The Arconia, Only Murders has had two successful seasons, earning the title of Hulu’s #1 comedy, with a third season currently in production.

Martin plays the role of Charles HadenSavage, Oliver Putnam is played by Short, and Gomez rounds it out playing Mabel Mora.

Season 1 begins with Charles, Oliver, and Mabel all living their own lives before they meet as three “weirdos” on an elevator.

Charles is a retired actor from the 90s, Oliver is a struggling theater director, and Mabel is looking to renovate her apartment and the hidden pains she has suffered through her life.

Their nights are interrupted by a fire alarm, causing them to evacuate and meet up at a diner. They soon discover that they all listen to the same true crime podcast, and the comedic trio is formed.

When the trio returns to the Arconia, they see a swarm of police cars and bright sirens.

Lester, the doorman, reveals that a neighbor, Tim Kono, died. Police indicate a suicide, but the trio’s true crime detective minds begin to spin theories and are determined to find the true motive and solve the crime on their own. The Only Murders in the Building podcast is created and the trio each play roles in narrowing down who Tim Kono’s killer was, by piecing the chain of events that led to Tim’s death. The trio grow so close that Oliver comes up with the nickname OllyMabel…but the Charles is silent. Season 1 ends with the arrest of the killer and segues into Season 2.

The next season picks back up with the murder of Arconia board president Bunny Folger. The trio is determined to find who is the new killer, with a completely new plate of suspects. Their personalities developed further, with viewers learning more about their past and meeting the new folk who will affect their future in the season. It concludes with the discovery of the new killer and gives a teaser of what Season 3 will be like, one year later in the fictional timeline.

Throughout the series, the Arconia is depicted as a majestic but also haunting place, due to the many dark hidden secrets, like death, jealousy, anger, romance, etc. It’s quandaries like these that make it the focal point of the storyline.

What I personally love about this series is the nuanced angle it brings when portraying New York City: a city where people can ascend from rags to riches, but with dark secrets and twists and turns

to daily life. The soundtrack composed by Siddhartha Khosla is melodic and it elegantly connects unwritten metaphors in the character dialogue. It makes viewers reflect on how we act as individuals and how events from our past shape our future. Quotes uttered by the characters like “Returning some place after a long time can be weird, and I guess how you ended up coming back and why has a lot to do with how weird it gets. And as hard as it can be to go back sometimes you have nowhere else to go” only furthers the interwovenness between the real world and the world of Only Murders and bridges the gaps of humanity’s actions toward others to the actions of the characters.

Despite all of these marvelous aspects of the show, it was snubbed for all of its 17 main Emmy nominations. But regardless of the lack of awards, Only Murders is a deeply loved series by fans.

According to Craig Erwich, President of Hulu Originals, “Only Murders in the Building is the true crown jewel of our slate. … We are grateful to be able to continue telling the stories of Charles, Oliver, and Mabel to viewers that have consistently shown us they crave more of this story.”

When Season 3 debuts, OllyMabel will continue to dazzle viewers on the screen with their killer performances at The Arconia.

The Alumni

by angelina ning ’23

Rich Ting ’98 stars in Netflix

New York, corporate law, and of course lots of drama.

In Netflix’s new adaptation of Helen Wan’s “The Partner Track,” a group of young attorneys aspire to become the next partner in their law firm. The 10 episode series follows Ingrid Yun (played by Arden Cho) as she juggles her corporate M&A law (mergers and acquisitions) career, her love life, and her biggest case yet, the Sun Corp deal.

The Partner Track touches up on issues in today’s corporate world, and presents topics many people can relate to. The show displays many things such as, the need of separation of private life and work, the racial discrimination many face in the workforce, but also the choice between morality and objective. The partner track is a diverse show representing many people from all backgrounds, from the academic burnt-out younger sister and the hidden prodigies, to the silver spoon elites of the corporate world. It’s a bingeable show for anyone wanting a pickme-up.

Fans who’ve watched the series may know the witty and confident character, Carter Min, but did you know he attended Riordan?

Carter Min, played by Rich Ting ’98, is a laid-back and clever character, “someone who I’m pretty much identical to,” said Ting. Both Rich Ting and his character Carter graduated from prestigious universities, Yale and Dartmouth, respectively. “I actually transferred to Riordan my senior year, because I wanted to go into college football.”

Social Science teacher Jeff Isola, Counselor David Lin, and Dean of Students Juan Zumbado were classmates with Ting.

“He transferred into Riordan his senior year, he was a pretty known entity, and I had a couple classes with him. He’s a very nice individual, humble, and came on as a quarterback for our football team, so he was known but still very down to earth,” said Isola ’98.

“I admired him not just as a good athlete but also as a really good student.”

His fellow football teammate, Lin ’99, also praised him. “My first impression was that he was very buff!” Lin laughed, “he was a transfer, but he was very kind and open, so he made friends with a lot of different people. All in all, super positive.”

During his high school football career, he made the executive decision to transfer to Riordan from Menlo High School. “I spent three years there, but my dream was college

Alumni TRACK

Netflix attorney drama

football,” said Ting. He was on varsity football, baseball, and track during his time in Menlo. “Unfortunately, the division was not allowing me to be recruited, so I looked to transfer.”

Ting was dedicated to pursuing athletics for college, and at the time he looked into the WCAL top divisions.

“I looked around all the schools, and met the Riordan coach. Honestly, I felt really great with them, but there was a starting quarterback already. They said if I was really interested we would be allowed to compete for the starting position.”

Recalling on his final year of high school, “Everyone was super accepting. I was welcomed very smoothly, and had the most fun. I never laughed so much until senior year.”

Ting went on to pursue football at Yale, graduated, and interned at ESPN, a stepping block to acting. “I always liked being in front of an audience, whether it was athletics or something else. I always looked up to Bruce Lee and Michael Jackson and how free they were in their performances. I wanted that freedom of performance.”

He propelled his acting career after law school. “I just didn’t want to do anything

.

Ting’s career started out like many others, with small in roles in Chicago PD and NCIS: Los Angeles. His big break was in Warrior as Bolo. “It was a career progress, looking back on the past and being part of something Bruce Lee created is unimaginable. It was like combining the best of both worlds.”

During Covid, Ting joined Netflix’s roster and started dubbing, charting Korean and Japanese dramas, such as My Name, All of Us Are Dead, Fishbowl Wives, and Juvenile Justice. “When I do a dub they want it to be American English, and it’s very frustrating and when I want to be Asian for the character, I promise myself I don’t want to be ‘fake’ voice over and dubbing they want to strip that away.”

In The Partner Track, he worked closely with the main stars, especially Arden Cho. “Originally I was cast as the brother, Z Min, but when they sent the scenes with Carter, I knew Carter was me.”

“In some way I wanted to be a relatable character, ‘like oh he reminds me of so and so,’ you know?” He went on, “The Asian American community is always cast as, the academic, the fob, the villain, or like the obnoxious Asian guy with a big personality, but for Carter, people can’t say he’s a loser or poser because he’s impressive, it’s almost humbling to play the

SOUTHERN ROOTS

Jordan Clarke ’23 journeyed to the South in search of history and family

by julien untalan ’24

In the Summer of 2022, Jordan Clarke ’23 visited Mississippi with his family to experience the often overlooked history of the struggle of African-Americans in the state.

One of the places he visited was Yazoo City, a town “in the middle of nowhere, that’s barely on the map” and with little to no infrastructure: malfunctioning electricity, rusting pipelines, barely any internet, and a now burnt-down shopping mall.

Originally, Jordan wanted to visit to see the University of Mississippi “Ole Miss”

“It’s important to build community wherever you go . . . and to always be a person that is willing to help those in need.”

- Jordan Clarke ’23

and “go back to his roots,” but his mother suggested to further look into the history of the state during their visit and to “see his real roots.”

He visited the African American Civil Rights Museum in Jackson, Mississippi, and that, along with his visit to Yazoo City, changed his perspective on the state of Mississippi after learning about its dark history.

In particular, he mentioned a specific moment that really impacted him on his visit: A poor family who didn’t have a car, no shoes, reused diapers and pants, had one kid tease another kid about having to go to school.

The kid who teased their sibling said that they didn’t need learning, a sobering reminder of what students everywhere do on a daily basis. They had nothing, and they just lost their older sister to a flood caused by a faulty pipe. It really

brought light to the fact that these historical issues carry on to today, and that there are people right now who have to endure such suffering.

His family endured many hardships in Mississippi–his mom particularly. She lived in a “shotgun house,” which was about the size of a port-a-potty, with nine other members of her family.

Picking cotton with her siblings for pennies and dimes was the only way for her to survive, as her mom left, and her dad was working and living in his car in Jackson, Mississippi for six days each week just to make enough.

In spite of all this hardship, the family stuck together as part of a community, a message that Jordan especially wanted to share.

“In Yazoo City, they built a community based on care” in spite of all their troubles. “It’s important to build community wherever you go . . . and to always be a person that is willing to help those in need.”

His family’s foundation, the Clarence and Mary Lee Howard Charity Foundation, donated hundreds of school supplies to local children to give back to their community and to primarily, give hope.

“I really enjoyed my trip to Mississippi and the parts where I got to learn more about my family’s history more than anything.”

- Jordan Clarke ’23

Our fall drink reviews

Starbucks Pumpkin Cold Brew

By Khushbu Asad ’26

Every coming year we get a new fall drink from Starbucks. While we had many different options this year, I was most intrigued by the Pumpkin Spice Cold Brew. It tasted very bitter at first, followed by a slight cinnamon aftertaste. The drink has a pumpkin cold brew coffee base, with a lot of vanilla cream on top. In comparison with other Starbucks drinks I have tried in the past, it wasn’t as sweet, so if you don’t like sweet drinks, you’ll definitely enjoy it! It was $4.45 for a tall size, which is pricey.

In spite of my dislike of pumpkin and pumpkin-flavored things, I found this drink to be very refreshing, and the pumpkin flavor did not overpower the vanilla. Rather, it was a good blend of vanilla, cinnamon, and pumpkin. It would be nice to have this drink and a bagel or pastry to go along with it. This is a great drink to have in autumn, as it slowly turns to winter, when you are feeling the season. I’d say this drink is perfect for those who love cinnamon, pumpkin, and vanilla! I would give this drink 4 cinnamon sticks out of 5.

Jamba Juice Pumpkin Smoothie

By Ivana Maldonado ’26

With each fall season comes yet another pumpkin smoothie. Let me start by saying I’m not a big pumpkin spice fan, so I had to keep an open mind.

After my first sip of the Pumpkin Smash smoothie from Jamba Juice, I thought, “Oh, it’s not bad.” I thought it would be bitter, but this smoothie was awfully sweet. Unlike most smoothies that are thick, this one was smooth and creamy. It smells like sweet milk and pumpkin and tastes like a pumpkin pie. Imagine taking some pumpkin ice cream and letting it

Cake Queen Horchata Latte

By Rose Baik ’26

Autumn still lingers in the air, which means it’s time to get festive. When you think about autumn, the items that usually come to mind are pumpkin pies, falling leaves, sweater weather, and what else? Fall drinks!

Cake Queen is popular for its tasty cakes, pastry, drinks, and coffees. I went there and got a medium-sized, hot horchata latte, decaf, with whipped cream, and I also got another horchata latte but as a cold drink to compare the differences. The drinks were $6 each.

Trust me, it tastes incredible. It had a mixture of cinnamon, coffee, with whipped cream on top, making it a swirl of flavors all blending together to create the defining taste of autumn. The sweet aroma of cinnamon and spice was astounding.

Personally, I enjoyed the warmer horchata latte over the colder one because the warmer drink suited the weather in SF more, giving warmth and comfort in this windy and freezing area. But the cold latte also had its pros. When you take a sip of it, the coolness of the horchata will genuinely refresh you. (Horchatas are meant to be cold anyway.) Overall, I give both drinks a 10 out of 10.

They are perfect for this season and will make you think about the beauty of autumn as you keep on drinking the enchanted horchata latte.

melt, and that’s basically this smoothie.

Even though my smoothie wasn’t bad, I sadly wasn’t bad, I sadly can’t say the same about the service. The price of the 16 ounce drink was over $8, and as you can see in the photo, they didn’t even fill it up all the way. Three words to describe this smoothie: pumpkin, sweet, and overpriced.

My final thought is that the drink isn’t bad, even though I don’t love how sweet it is. If you love sugar and pumpkin spice, go for it. However, you’re not missing out by not trying the pumpkin smash smoothie. I give this drink 3 out of 5 pumpkins.

“THE