First Semester of College

The first semester of college at St. John's University has been quite an adventure, but a short one. I remember thinking before college, that it would be a whole new experience and a whole shift of change. It was true that it was all new to me and life-changing. The fact was I was not the only one going through it now, there were plenty of incoming freshmen that would feel even more nervous then I did. The experience did turn out to be different than I expected it to be.

The first couple of days I had made friends with plenty of people, faster than I ever did in my life. I became friends with my roommates, friends with her friends, friends with students I met at orientation and even the orientation leaders. School itself has been very interesting too. I loved all my classes and all my teachers. The activities has also brought many people together.

This semester was a life-changing experience for me. This has helped boost my social life. It has made me make life-long friends and experiences I will never forget.

Ban on giving underage drinkers alcohol

The Suffolk County Legislature passed a proposal stating that adults who allow other people's children to drink alcohol in their homes would face fines and possible jail time under "social host". There is a law on the books in Nassau County. The proposal is aimed to prevent adults from serving alcohol to underage people. The county wants the law to be in effect before the holidays, since most drinking goes on around New Year's.

Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy has not decided if he wants to sign the legislation into law. Communities across the country have adopted such statutes. The Suffolk County legistaure is supported by MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) and The Long Island Council on Alcohol and Drug Dependence. Presiding Officer William Lindsay and Thomas Barraga voted against the legislation. They said they are concerned that the government is sticking its nose into citizens' private lives. Some are concerned that this miht lead underage drinkers to drink somewhere else like somewhere public. They feel that if they are unsupervised it is more likely they will drink and drive.

Civilians hit by LIRR

Two people were struck and killed by trains on Monday in apparent suicides. One man jumped in front of an oncoming train at the Wyandanch train station. The train was traveling at about eighty miles per hour. After the accident passengers were transported by bus. The train line was delayed for two hours.

Monday night, another man was hit by another train. This man was killed west of the Floral Park station. Trains for Huntington/Port Jefferson, Oyster Bay, and Hempstead branches were delayed. The trains were delayed up to forty-five minutes. The Ronkonkoma branch was restored at 10:30 a.m. this morning.

Drunk driver hits police car

An unlicensed, intoxicated driver crashed into a Nassau County police car parked on the shoulder of the Long Island Expressway. The driver left the officer and the driver's passenger in critical condition. At 5:44 a.m., yesterday, highway patrol officer Gennaro Ferraro was parked on Exit 48 on the Long Island Expressway. His car was hit by Paul Reid, Jr., 24, from Brentwood. The driver has a checkered driving record.

Reid, Ferraro, and Reid's passenger, Jorge Roman, 24 were taken to Nassau University Medical Center. Reid and Ferraro were both in critical condition, but stable. Ferraro suffered head and back trauma. Roman has a possible fractured leg. Reid has a possible collapsed lung.

Reid was arrested on several charges. The charges he was arrested for was second-degree vehicular result, first-degree aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, and driving while intoxicated. Records indicate that Reid either pleaded guilty to or was convicted of disorderly conduct in 2000 and 2001. State motor vehicle records indicate his license was suspended or revoked multiple times in 2005 for driving without insurance, driving an unregistered vehicle, and failing to pay fines and respond to summonses.