Celia Condon: How The Harbinger uncovered a new side to her

I always wanted to be the cool girl in high school. Every sleepover in elementary school was spent watching “High School Musical,” “Mean Girls” and “Clueless.” 

My dream was to be a high schooler. 

To finally be one of the big girls. I lived to hear what party my high-school-age babysitters were going to after my parents got home. I imagined dancing in the rain with my Troy Botlon after Prom and being named Dance Team Captain.

I started freshman year as a Lancer Dancer, fulfilling my “Grease” dreams as I performed in cherry red lipstick and sparkling blue costumes during basketball game halftimes. I swam for the swim team in the spring, thinking I’d pick it up quickly — I didn’t.

Sophomore year I decided to quit swimming, keep dancing, try lacrosse and apply for the newspaper — located in the intimidating corner spot of 413B — The Harbinger.

I gave up sports once and for all junior year. You may be starting to think I’m a quitter, but remember how I joined The Harbinger? I stuck with that one.

Junior year I was an Assistant Print Editor and this year I’m a Co-Print-Editor-in-Chief. As I sit at my desktop in the back of room 413B, writing the fifth version of this column, I realize that little me would be in awe of this new side of me that’s realistically a total dork.

I found my niche with The Harbinger.

When I see an oxford comma I cringe. When people use the wrong “your” it physically pains me to not correct them. In the J-room, Elise and I fight over who gets to aux the Harry Potter Soundtrack. My Harbinger name is “Ceils.” 

Last week I got so excited about a font that I spent $11 just to test it out. I have a Pinterest board titled, “Color Schemes for Harbinger” with the heart-eye-emoji following. I have a list of inside jokes that only Harbinger staffers would ever find funny. InDesign updates make me giddy. Photoshop tutorials have become my evening entertainment. When people compliment my verbiage, I glow. 

While it’s true that I still love occasionally dressing up for school and being surrounded by my classmates at games, I’ve learned to embrace the side of me that newspaper has uncovered. So many senior staff members thank The Harbinger for breaking them out of their shell. The biggest thank you that I owe The Harbinger is for hardening such a big part of me into a nerd. 

Even as a J-kid, I feel like I’m coming out of this thing pretty cool.

So while many of you Harbinger staffers like to joke that I’m the bad cop, and Sydney the good, just know that you all are the center of my favorite part of high school, where I’ve become most myself. Unless the sentence starts with, “Hey I know deadline’s tomorrow, but I haven’t had a chance to get photos…” know that I will always be here to help you, whether it’s which “your” to use, or how to navigate high school. 

While there’s no chick flick about a girl living her teenage life in a rigorous newsroom, I would consider my high school experience to be a movie.