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LETTER FROM EDITOR
Hello, my little Teller snowflakes! I hope this December’s chill hasn’t smothered your creative flame away just yet! I hope this fall semester went as smooth as it could’ve been.
I want to thank our graphic designer, Lauren Bialt, for creating the covers and adhering to Managing Editor Sophia’s tirades of perfectionism (still love you girl). Without Lauren’s time and commitment, Apricity wouldn’t look as flawless as it is now. You amaze me time and time again, and I don’t know what The Teller would do without you.
I also want to thank my Executive Board for turning this issue around as fast as we did. I know it was not easy, considering the timing with finals week and last minute, unnecessary stress that responsibilities sometimes come with.
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
I hope everyone who contributed to this issue has a very fun and relaxing winter break. Spend time with loved ones, go see a concert, write stories, build snowmen, take pictures, have hot chocolate. Do whatever you want. You deserve it!
FynnHaughney
Fynn Haughney Editor-in-Chief
Sophia Lattof Managing Editor
Sydney Anderson Adventure Section Editor
Cassander Liu Co-Head Page Editor
Dylan Murphy Horoscope & Misc. Section Editor
Cassidy Brock Arts & Literature Section Editor
Nicole Pottgen Fashion & Beauty Section Editor
Lauren Bialt Head of Design
Peyton Waszkiewicz Co-Head Page Editor
Kiely Caulfield Head Copy Editor
Agya Owusu-Fordjour
Sociology major
Black Studies and Deaf
Studies minors
Junior
Contribution(s): Dusk at New Paltz; Overcast Day
Vail Perry
English major
Creative Writing and Deaf Studies minors
Senior
Contribution(s):
Childhood; When I Go
Peyton Waszkiewicz
Adolescence English
Education major
Creative Writing minor
Freshman
Contribution(s): The Feeling of Falling Snow; The Bench f e a t u r
A Quick Glance: The Union Square Holiday Market
Cassander Liu
‘Tis the season of peppermint mochas, decked out spruce trees and (a lack of) snow! But more importantly: here comes consumerism’s gallant reign, as everyone is eager to start shopping for little treats and huge surprises alike as holiday gifts. Of course, I personally plead guilty to looking forward to the open-air holiday markets in some of the most commercial areas of New York City. The minute you leave the N/Q/R/W 14 St–Union Sq. train station you should be greeted by the Union Square Holiday Market and its 185 vendors compacted into a maze-like space of makeshift wooden shacks with ribbed teal roofing. The holiday market only runs until Dec. 23 and operates 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday. But, thankfully, Union Square also hosts a nearby year-round greenmarket filled with baked goods and farm produce from the surrounding region (Ulster County included!) Vendors at the holiday market range from artisan pottery, puppets for sale, apparel and prints boasting the greatest city in the world, cat-themed merchandise, crystals and tiny buddha statues for the spiritually-inclined and ornate pearl jewelry that shines in the late autumn sun. There was also a guy looking for an opponent for his chess battle, but I’m not too sure if he counted as an official vendor.
Unsurprisingly crowded and full of admiring shoppers on a beautiful (but chilly) Saturday afternoon, I spent most of my time observing each stall while slowly treading behind people with the same idea. The food and drink vendors were probably the main attractions for tourists, as I noticed a massive line waiting for chocolate at the No Chewing Allowed! stall. They’re a French company that specializes in truffles with physical locations at different holiday markets in the city (besides the one in Union Square, they can be found at the Bryant Park Winter Village, Columbus Circle Holiday Market and the Macy’s Holiday Market). The other cuisine offered varied from Wisconsin cheese curds at Curds the Word, Filipino street food at So Sarap and empanadas at Empanada Papa. Admittedly, a lot of the stuff being offered felt pricey and way out of my price range. But it did fulfill a sense of whimsy I wanted from being in a festive space one might have expected in a quaint European city instead. I did also end up leaving with a really soft graphic sweatshirt from SM Wardrobe for a holiday gift towards a beloved friend! Overall, the Union Square Holiday Market is worth checking out, especially if you ’ re one who enjoys window shopping or looking for unique gifts.
QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF BEFORE BREAK
DYLAN MURPHY
ARIES: TAURUS: GEMINI: CANCER: LEO: VIRGO:
ARE YOU SURE YOU SHOULD STAY IN THIS RELATIONSHIP?
ARE EITHER OPTIONS BEFORE YOU TRULY DESIRABLE?
DO YOU KNOW EVERY SIDE OF THE SITUATION?
WHAT WORK CAN YOU DO AWAY FROM SCHOOL?
IS THIS WHAT YOU WANT, AND THIS SOON?
HAVE YOU BEEN A BIT TOO FOCUSED ON THE MATERIAL?
LIBRA: SCORPIO:
HOW COMFORTABLE CAN YOU BE WITH UNFAMILIAR PEOPLE?
WHY MUST YOU MAINTAIN A FACADE?
SAGITTARIUS: CAPRICORN: AQUARIUS: PISCES:
CAN YOU TRUST YOURSELF NOT TO ENTERTAIN THINGS YOU KNOW WILL HURT YOU?
CAN YOU HANDLE CHANGE?
DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO LEAD?
ARE YOU WORRIED ABOUT THE RIGHT THINGS?
THE TELLER EBOARD PRESENTS....
THE TELLER WR
From a joke made at the copy-editing meeting to a page in the magazine, please feast your eyes on a selection of songs that made it onto the EBoard’s Spotify Wrappeds. We sincerely hope you enjoy some of our top songs this year!
With love, The Teller E-Board
Sexy to Someone, Clairo
Dinner @ Brasserie Zédel, Luvcat
Guess, Charli XCX
Under Pressure, David Bowie & Queen
Can’t Cool me Down, Car Seat Headrest
M.R., Crumb
Never Lose Me, Flo Milli
Good Luck, Babe!, Chappell Roan
Obsessed, Olivia Rodrigo
Mélamine, Klô Pelgag
For When You’re Cold and The Sun Went Down
Sidney Anderson
I’m God, Clams Casino & Imogen Heap
Eau D’Bedroom Dancing, Le Tigre
fineshrine, Purity Ring
All Night, The Dare
And So I Know, Stone Temple Pilots
Saint Joe On The School Bus, Marcy Playground
XOXO, Cherub
Deadlines (Thoughtful), Car Seat Headrest
The Complete Knock, Blood Orange
Sleepyhead, Passion Pit
Cherry, Lana Del Rey
Smalltown Boy, Bronski Beat
Everybody Here Wants You, Jeff Buckley
going through the motions of winter
Sophia Lattof
No Machine, Adrianne Lenker
Lego Ring, Faye Webster ft. Lil Yachty
Sienna, The Marías
number one girl, ROSÉ
Touching Yourself, The Japanese House
At Last, Etta James
Darling, I, Tyler the Creator ft. Teezo Touchdown
Luther, Kendrick Lamar ft. SZA
Histoire d'un amour, Dalida
Shelter, Alice Phoebe Lou
Lilac Wine, Jeff Buckley
Report From A New Place
LucaAiello
From my window the moon swells in a darkness that turns to velvety dawn, and soon the faces of rowhouses and manors appear. From my small room, I think of the schoolchildren still asleep and the parents preparing for work under that beating January sun. Around five, I massage my head and see the one-word texts or funny videos sent by friends and loved ones an ocean away and five hours behind, and I think of all the special connections grown dormant and dry. This past week has been the hardest of my life, and at around six, when the crows perch outside begin their evil cackle, I feel myself lie down in bed; a fragment.
Childhood
Vail Perry
my shelf covered in dusted figurines
my arm soaked with the ink of a hummingbird
my mind full of a childhood spent with you
a yellow butterfly came to say hello today a moment crossed my mind of the four of us at the picnic table a woman complimented your sweater yesterday
I wish you had fought harder
I wish you had seen me walk the stage
I wish you hadn't left her all alone
Dusk at New Paltz, Agya Fordjour
Overcast Day, Agya Fordjour
In the midnight cabin, dried leaves and rotted walls frame her vision of a spirit beneath the boards where the records were stolen.
She turns left then stops at the sighting of a sparrow— recollecting of Aphrodite— a pair of safe eyes as she wanders the wooded lodge. She tripped with the sudden prick of a branching Aralia and as the thorn wound healed in a dim instant, she hoped there was nothing hidden in the cobwebbed corners that the moon on her forehead couldn't save her from.
Between Knowing or Not, and Answered or Not
Leeza Pantano
The Bench, Peyton Waszkiewicz
November
Cassidy
Brock
Winter wind is so bitterly cold it eats away at my rose flushed face, pulling back every layer of my being and I’ve never felt so alone.
Not a single speck of snow from the sky, but everything is still falling apart and I cannot grip it between my frostbitten fingertips.
I sit on a bench until I can no longer feel my limbs once woven into my body that I don’t recognize anymore, because I’m losing myself all over again.
Evan Schouten
Self Arcane
Evan Schouten
The basement
Sophia Lattof
Like gospel, their breath merges with mine
Between moments of silence on a ratty couch in the basement. The rain comes crashing in, Shattering the windows and drowning us both. In my confusion I lose them, I run and avoid and deflect and While my back is turned, they leave.
Ladybug on the fire alarm
FynnHaughney
ladybug on the fire alarm, awaiting for the lucky one to notice the popcorn burning bumblebees are toddlers in the fields
sweet, golden sprinkles everywhere the purest forms of sugarcane speed as fast as a bullet train risky stings and dancing ballet seeds old little lady rocking in her lichen chair lennon chose the harlequin— her bite broke the skin this decision created gene flow, not green dough he drove away all the love. pigeons are tainted doves resting on bruised cotton ladybug on the fire alarm, awaiting for the dead of winter to sleep with a low heartbeat
Summer
LUCA AIELLO
Why do we bother with other seasons: the autumn that is fleeting, the winter whose days die prematurely, the spring that induces runny noses and watery eyes?
This, above all, is simply the best– sleeping until noon, feet on the chilled floor of an air conditioned room, racing outside for humid air that warms bare skin,
maybe wearing shorts and a t-shirt, or a handful of sunscreen, but mostly racing around a scorching beach, appetizing books sitting on a blanket, rushing waves wanting us to splash, a football ready to be played.
Or, at worst, a night in the hot city, surveying booming festivals and bars teeming with life, a time where I drank to your love for me and you drank to mine.
The Feeling of Falling Snow
It’s a funny thing when the snow begins to fall
A child escapes my heavy heart and begins to play
Running laps on the field trying not to slip
Spinning in circles while snow falls on my lips
I lay in the snow as it embraces my shoulder
Angels appear in my wake as the blush blooms on my face
I walk around endlessly, just my music as my company
My footsteps continue as fresh snow covers them up
While it paints this place white, I can’t help but dread
For when this dream will end, when this moment will stop
Cause it all will go away and leave you with your thoughts
And while the thoughts start again and your hands start to numb
Your mind is flooded by reminders of the things you have lost
As the snow will begin to melt, maybe it will take away the grief
Leaving puddles of memories it’s no longer a soft place to sleep
WaxIdols
The candle on my desk has burned so low that the top lip of the glass casts a shadow a wobbly, circled silhouette in the far corner of my ceiling, the light warps through the ledge and casts rays of imitation sunlight for an imitation sun, and I make myself laugh thinking maybe it’s an imitation sign from imitation god peeking down at all us real people staring back up at him scratching our heads wondering how the hell he even got up there in the first place and if he ever thinks about how the hell he’s going to get back down.
Kiely Caulfield
And I’d like to say something profound about looking up at his imaginary face something about perseverance and little joys on dark cold nights but really I know it’s just a candle that’s burned so low that the top lip of the glass casts a shadow and that the imitation sunlight from the imitation sun on my ceiling only exists because I say it exists and then I’m left to wonder if imitation god is pissed that I misinterpreted his imitation sign or if he’s overjoyed that I’ve even thought him into existence at all.
