FA L L 2 017
THE CALMING CHAOS
Paintings by Katelyn Eustace Layout by Sylvia Chen
In this mini series, I meditate on the calming yet chaotic effect clouds have on our surroundings. Each piece draws inspiration from a different cloud formation I saw in Florida, which has summer storms frequently. For each calm night, there is a downpour of rain the next day. Each piece was painted with a different part of these storms in mind. The orange formation of clouds was an exploration in the calming effect and beauty of summer storms, while the pink formation was of their chaos. The remaining piece was a close look at the immense scale of these storms and how they tend to intimidate me with their sheer size. All pieces were painted on an iPad using a variety of brushes in Procreate.
MANDATORY SPIRIT Written by Thomas Woodside
Layout by Sylvia Chen
Why “Spirit week” is built on a deeply flawed premise. The word “spirit” has great power. It originates from the Latin word meaning “to breathe”, and that history is not far from the truth. Spirit is something innate, something deeper than the brain. It is beautiful, and the presense of it unites all living beings. Most importantly, it is intensely personal: your spirit belongs to you, and you only. It is hard to conceive of a world in which we are simply the sum of our parts, of our organs and our brain. There is something more, something greater.
“Spirit” comes close to describing it. Spirit is inherently uncontrolled. A spirited horse cannot be restrained. A spirit can withstand worldly disaster. Spirit can never be stolen, even if body and mind are.
Last Thursday, after avoiding all of the spirit activities, I was among friends and chuckling at a presentation my sister was preparing. I was in for a rude awakening.
But I have heard the word “spirit” used in a way completely antithetical to that true meaning.
I heard a voice creep into the room. It was a shout from the library, and it was unmistakable. I know that voice all too well.
Last week, according to decades-long tradition and administration decree, was “spirit week.” Every day, we are entreated to dress in a certain way and participate in or watch largely physical competitions in order to “show our school spirit.”
The librarian came in, and she told us that one of the senior administrators was telling people to leave the library. We did not ask why, or where we were supposed to go, because it was all too familiar. We were being compelled to attend the “spirit activity”.
Our unique, diverse, multifaceted spirits become homogenous, spirits devoted not to ourselves or to others, but to the school. And the school has no spirit to offer in return.
The idea is not unlike the kind of “mandatory patriotism” that our president seems to value. But instead of a half-baked argument that our improper participation or lack thereof is disrespectful, we typically hear no argument at all. You must go, they say, and we must, since they wield the power. So we left, and we sat, and we watched distantly as people threw foam balls across the gym. The Seniors won, as Fate always decrees.
So I disregarded the premise of “spirit week.” I ignored the activities and dress suggestions and I continue with my life as usual: I participate in spirited discussions with true friends instead of organized activities with strangers.
It was over. We were told to leave and get to our next class. Something real was taken from me that day, and it was replaced with something contrived. But my spirit remained unchanged. “Mandatory spirit” is almost an oxymoron. A spirit is by its nature uncontrollable, and it cannot be mandated to manifest itself in any specific way. But an oxymoron can be reconciled. The words may not make sense, but the idea ultimately does.
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Our unique, diverse, multifaceted spirits become homogenous, spirits devoted not to ourselves or to others, but to the school.
“Mandatory spirit” can never be reconciled. Although the administration may believe that the words make sense, the idea never will.
The same administrator who forced us from the library has a saying: “This school is a place of values, not a place of rules.” It has become harder to believe him. I caught sight of my sister at lunch that day and told her what I thought. She agreed with me. But one of her friends was surprised: “You’re supposed to want to be spirited.” Those words are almost a paradox. But a paradox can be reconciled. We must all remember the fundamental truth: no one should control what you want, and no one can control your spirit. For more, check out Thomas’ blog at http://www.equonc.com/
ZAC SCACCO ON SHOES WRITER Natalie Jarrett
PHOTOGRAPHER Bella Scola
DESIGNER Sylvia Chen
After admiring a pair of Jordans (pictured) for a while, junior Zac Scacco finally bought them as his first pair of sneakers in his collection
For the past 30 to 40 years, the “sneaker heads� have been taking control of the mainstream fashion industry. The term sneakerhead has described typically young people who, under the influence of hip-hop culture, collect sneakers in droves from brands like Nike, Reebok, and Adidas. As present as the sneaker collecting trend is in other parts, it is a surprise to see someone at Menlo stand out against the sea of pronation-worn Sperrys. Junior, Zac Scacco is one such individual.
Zac began collecting sneakers in middle school when he finally ”got into men size and could go with my mom to the nike store and get the newest kicks.” At first, he was not as concerned with the appearance or popularity of shoes as much as the functionality, but soon that would all change with the influence of his peers. “In the 9th grade my best friend Louis Levitan always wore basketball shoes, which made me also want to wear shoes like that.” He began his his shoe collection with a pair of Jordans that he had admired for a while (Pictured). Zac, like all serious collectors, hold Jordans in a special kind of reverence. Jordans, which come in an assortment of styles and colors, are the namesake of the iconic basketball player Michael Jordan and have dominated the streetwear scene since their release in 1985. Zac could not say enough about them; he raved about their versatility and craftsmanship, even calling the shoe a “masterpiece.” Jordans are what inspired him to join the community of sneaker loving individuals in the first place.
SPECIAL THANK YOU to Zac for sharing his passion for sneakers with us!
Zac’s collection and taste continue to evolve, just like the ever-changing industry. Given his changing style, Zac regularly sells his old shoes after having been satisfied with their use. If you follow him on any social media platform you might see him advertising a used pair. Though he doesn’t believe new is always better. Zac is wholeheartedly against wearing shoes simply because they’re trendy, expressing great dislike in shoes such as Yeezys, which are a creation by the popular rap artist Kanye West. To less fashion-minded individuals, it would seem that all shoes are basically “fabric connected to foam.” So what distinguishes masterpieces and glorified feet sacks? How does one have “shoe game?” According to Zac, it’s about “what the shoe means to the person wearing it. ”At the end of the day, confidence and a strong sense of self are key to developing an equally strong sense of style.
pho. bi.a
alena stern
emily finke layout by walter li
Phobia (n): an extreme or irrational fear of or aversion to something Funny how, when put like that, a phobia seems to be a very daunting thing, being associated with words such as “extreme” or irrational.
Phobia (n): an extreme or irrational fear of, or aversion, to something Upon hearing the word “phobia” most people think of some long, complicated name describing a fear of something that does not seem very scary for the majority of people. While balloons or butterflies are rather unscary to most, there are people who possess globophobia (fear of balloons) or lepidopterophobia (fear of butterflies) that can make time spent around these objects feel like a matter of life or death or extraordinary panic-inducing. I mean, it isn’t it just a piece of rubber filled with air that has almost completely incapable hurting anyone? Yet, senior Diego Mejia, who possesses globophobia says, “I’ve been terrified of balloons since I was six.” He also makes sure to point out, “They think it’s like a childish fear.” It is unfortunate that this is the response he gets for
having this phobia because while it can seem silly, it is still a very real, panic-inducing condition that should not be taken lightly.
balloons feel like you want to giggle, I just want to remind you of a few things. 1. Just because you haven’t felt it doesn’t mean it’s not valid 2. You don’t know people’s backgrounds, so why judge? 3. There are most likely things that you fear or do that others do not understand
You don’t know people’s backgrounds, so why judge? What many people don’t realize is that the broad spectrum of phobias from ones that are very specific and uncommon to phobias that are extremely common such as social phobia. This is not to say that one kind phobia is more serious than another because it is less common, but rather it is important to acknowledge and raise awareness that “phobia” is an umbrella term for a wide variety of fears and is more common than you think.
To those of you who still when hearing that someone has a fear of
A phobia is a kind of anxiety disorder that can be organized into three categories:
1. Specific Phobias: A fear of a specific object or situation 2. Social Phobia: Stemming from social anxiety, it can mean a fear of being embarrassed in front of people 3. Agoraphobia: fear of being alone in a public space with no easy way out
day and age. With the explosion of social media apps such as instagram and snapchat, it allows people to minimize the amount of actual interaction they have with others. Unfortunately, this can cause many to feel like their phone is a safety net, protecting them from the anxiety of having to actually interact with people in real life, making physical or social interactions feel foreign or awkward. Imagine this anxiety times ten, and you’ve probably got what professionals would consider social phobia.
“Social Phobia: Stemming from social anxiety, it can mean a fear of being embarassed in front of people.”
Social phobia, or rather social anxiety is a phrase you hear a lot in this
While wikipedia describes the anxi ety surrounding social interactions “irrational,” is it really fair to assume that these fears are completely crazy? It seems obvious that decreased social interaction results in increased discomfort with this kind of interaction. Especially if many people are feeling this way and feel constantly judged by each other, it only perpetuates the issue. When in an awkward situation, many turn to their phones
with the hope of decreasing the discomfort level of the situation. However, when a person goes on their phone, their instinct is likely to text somebody or go on social media and communicate with people through the cell phone-barrier. This creates a toxic cycle of not wanting to talk to others and going on a cell phone instead, which only makes interacting with others even more difficult.
Stepping out of your comfort zone can feel like life or death, and truth be told, you won’t always feel better after doing it. That doesn’t mean that it won’t get easier in the future. Like anything else, becoming comfortable around people takes time and practice. The beautiful thing about human beings is that we are social creatures.
“you’ll realize that the world isn’t so bad when you have people to share it with.” The solution to this isn’t as simple as just making people put away their phones and forcing them to talk to each other. The problem is rooted and must be attacked from a much deeper place. The problem with social phobia is that the problem is very much rooted in how many teenagers prefer to interact: cell phones. However, since it is impossible to change an entire society of teenagers over night, if you are experiencing these things and believe that you have social phobia I will just leave you with a few thoughts:
may li We are innately inclined to interact with other, so learn to let your natural instincts take over and just maybe, you’ll realize that the world isn’t so bad when you have people to share it with.
I Dont give a funk
A Playlist By Natalie Jarrett
On account of my musical taste, I often get told that I seem as though I’m from another time. Perhaps from the 60s or 70s, which I regard as a golden age in music history. However, I have mixed feelings about this. I am very much a person of the present, even in my musical taste. I also detest the kind of cynical nostalgia, which refuses to see the good in anything modern. The truth of the matter is that my favorite artists were very ahead of their time. Late 60s and 70s rock, jazz and funk have had a huge influence on today’s most popular genre, hip-hop. Recently hip-hop has surpassed rock and is now the most streamed musical genre. Rappers are essentially the new rockstars (think rapper Post Malone’s latest hit, Rockstar). Though I would argue that funk has played an even greater role in shaping the hip-hop genre.
Funk originated from the late 70s where underground musicians would speak rhythmically or “rap” over a repeated funk track. Hip-hop artists today like Kendrick Lamar, Childish Gambino, and Bruno Mars,
have kept the funk roots within their work, while at the same time managing to stay modern. My purpose with this playlist is to share some of my favorite funk hits that are still influential to artists today.
I’d rather be with you Bootsy Collins (this was an inspiration for Childish Gambino’s Redbone)
Move on Up Curtis Mayfield (you might recognize this as the song Kanye West sampled in his 2005 hit Touch the Sky)
Up For the Downstroke Parliament The Payback James Brown (James Brown is probably the most sampled funk artist in modern hip hop. This particular song was sampled in Kendrick Lamar’s King Kunta) Fight the Power The Isley Brothers (also artists who are frequently sampled in hip hop) Brick House The Commodores
Watermelon Man (1973 Version) Herbie Hancock Ebony Jam Tower of Power Adolecent Funk Funkadelic (Sampled in Dr. Dre’s 92 classic, Bitches ain’t shit) Rock Creek Park Donald Byrd and the Blackbyrds (Nas used this in Get Down from 2002) Ecstasy The Ohio Players
P.S. If you like this kind of music I recommend watching the netflix original series, The Get Down, about a young black man’s musical journey in Bronx during the late 1970s.