The Blue & Gold: Volume XXII, Senior Edition by The Blue & Gold

CONTENTS

STAFF

2 3

letter from the editor blue & gold staff letter from dr. hartzell words of wisdom

on the map

superlatives

tiger baby

flashforward and back

the best of times

looking ahead summer in taiwan bucket list

thank you notes

time capsule

here’s to four more years

rebecca tseng, editor-in-chief

jocelyn chen, managing editor [online]

christine lin, arts & culture editor

andrew lin, staff reporter

emily yang, managing editor [print]

amanda huang, news editor

bonna yi, staff reporter

lindsey kundel, faculty advisor

“

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR Dear Class of 2016, As I rummaged the internet for inspiration on writing this letter, I drowned in a sea of cliches that I do not want to subject you to (Exhibit A is in this very sentence.) Honestly, I’m sure you don’t want to sit through yet another preaching of what you already expect a letter such as this to say, so I’m going to help you out. Here are all the things a speech such as this one should cover (according to my Google searches), condensed. 1. Looking back: “High school was easy. It was like riding a bike. Except the bike was on fire, and the ground was on fire, and everything was on fire because it was hell.” -Randey Chung 2. Friendships and family: “How lucky am I to have someone who makes saying goodbye so hard.” - Winnie The Pooh 3. Saying thank you: “I feel a very unusual sensation – if it is not indigestion, I think it must be gratitude.” - Benjamin Disraeli 4. Looking forward: “True terror is to wake up one morning and discover that your high school class is running the country.” - Kurt Vonnegut If one day I should wake up and find all of you running the country, I will indeed feel terrified. Terrified that I somehow got amnesia and missed out a huge chunk of my life. I will also be incredibly sad. Sad to say that I’ve missed out on the great things that have led you to become the leaders you will become. Lastly, I will not be surprised. Instead, I will be even prouder to say that I am part of this class, the TAS class of 2016, and that I knew it would happen all along. Then, on Chinese New Year, I can brag about being Facebook friends with you to distract my prying family from questioning what in the world I am doing with my “useless” degree. (Also we won’t have to worry about the amnesia problem because we will be able to look at the literal timeline of events that led you to become the world leader you have become.) So, here’s my own analogy and attempt at words of wisdom: High school was like writing this letter. It was difficult from start to finish--to be original, to find your own voice. Sometimes you borrow phrases and ask for help from others; sometimes you are able to create your own. Sometimes you procrastinate so much you have no idea how you pulled it together in the end. There’s a lot of editing and rearranging and regrets, but in the end, most importantly, it was fun, and you are proud of what you’ve done. To conclude: 5. “You’re off to great places. Today is your day. Your mountain is waiting, so get on your way!” - Dr. Seuss Thank you for all the good times, Class of 2016. See you at the reunion. :-) Yours, Rebecca Tseng

“

LETTER FROM DR. HARTZELL Dear Seniors, Congratulations—you are the first true D-Blocker graduates! Of course, students never want to admit that school is okay (much less enjoyable), but surely you must recognize that you have been the beneficiaries of a TAS community that planned and sacrificed to provide you with the best educational experience possible. Now, as you venture off to join a world full of challenges and opportunities, of great good and great evil, I hope that you will keep in mind the enormous privilege you have enjoyed—a secondary school school experience that includes a combination of people, place, and program that are almost without equal in the world. Most of the people are students, and you should never forget the friendships and acquaintances that you have made here; however, your teachers have also played a significant role in shaping your life—it would be appropriate to thank them before you leave for life’s new adventures. May your lessons in character and academics serve you well in the years to come. With very best wishes, Dr. H

WORDS OF WISDOM MS. SONG HAN A shape of a container may change over time, but the content remains and determines the value of it. Usually, people ask, “What do you want to do?” But I would like to ask, “What kind of person do you want to become and be remembered as?” What you do and where you work/live can change, but who you are takes you through any changes or variables you may face in life. As you are about to start a new chapter in your life, I want to remind you that life is not all about going farther, but about growing and transforming yourself. You have the power to make changes in you and around you—it’s a choice. Life is not just about doing but about being. I have been always so proud of you and I am very excited to see what kind of person you will become! :)

MS. ABIGAIL CHEN Here are the REAL lessons about doing laundry in college: hoard quarters like they are more important than your life; don’t leave your laundry detergent in the laundry room; take the clothes out of the dryer ASAP if you want to have crisp t-shirts; don’t forget to also wash your bedsheets and pillowcases regularly (personal experience speaking); buy socks of one color because you will end up with odd numbers when the dryer mysteriously eats them. When your heart gets inevitably broken, stomped on, and smashed into a million pieces, make sure you have friends who will prevent you from sending sad texts or posting awkwardly on your ex’s facebook page. When you inevitably break, stomp on, and smash someone else’s heart into a million pieces, don’t judge them too harshly for their sad texts and awkward facebook posts on your page.

MR. ANTHONY IVES Someone once asked the oldest man in the world what was his secret to longevity, and he replied, “When it rains, I let it.” Psychological research clearly shows that how we feel is not caused by what happens to us but by how we react to what happens to us. As you go off to college, I hope you will continue to grow, know yourself better, and learn that at any moment you can decide (and are constantly deciding) how you want to view your situation and thus how you feel. Once you realize this, you will understand that at any moment you can choose to experience happiness through practicing gratitude, humility, appreciation, and love. This insight and wisdom is the most important thing you can learn in your life. I wish you all the best in learning this well. Good luck on your journey towards self-actualization.

ON THE MAP

He Floats Around Somewhere Eric Lin: Minerva Schools at KGI

Cold Weather for the Coldhearted

Boston University: James Lee, Caroline Tung, Jinhyun Park, Austin Hsu Boston College: Sean Cheng Brown University: Eli Morimoto, Emily Yang Cornell University: Joseph Chuang, Hellen Jang Columbia University: Wesley Lewis Carnegie Mellon University: Brandon Huang, Jason Hsu, Stephanie Chen, Winnie Fu George Washington University: Samuel Biddick University of the Arts: Jene Sato Parsons School of Design: Silvia Chen, Phoebe Tseng University of Chicago: Albert Chen, Paul Chang University of Notre Dame: Bonna Yi Massachusetts Institute of Technology: Leon Yim University of Wisconsin Madison: Julia Wen University of Maryland College Park: Andrew Moy Wellesley College: Eashawn Luo Washington University in St. Louis: Rebecca Tseng, Joy Chiu John Hopkins University: Jonathan Wang, Sunny Chen New York University: Jonathan Moon, Veronica Yang, Patrick Chen, Jeffrey Liao, Helena Chang, Thibault Binier, Christopher Lin, Takeshi Yamashita Tufts University: Isabel Liao Beloit College: Ryley Rasmussen Smith College: Ruby Wu Middlebury College: Victoria Yeh University of Pennsylvania: Sherry Tseng Dartmouth College: Lauren McNabb University of Michigan: Zoie Chang Georgetown University: Carl Wegner, Angela Liu Northwestern University: Richard Yeh Virginia Commonwealth University: Mai Hills Yale University: Hannah Wood Rutgers University, New Brunswick: Leonardo Chen University of Connecticut: Ying Hong Choo University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign: Fanny Oyang

Too Cultured for America

Kingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s College London: Sincere Chen Manchester University: Giorgia Varchi London School of Economics and Political Science: Daniel Wang Durham University: Phillip Ku University of Bath: Yilin Lin University of College London: James Hung Waseda University: Nicole Sung, Amanda Liao, Leo Chiang Keio University: Nelson Sun The University of Tokyo: Kevin Liao University of Toronto: Amy Chen, Jodelle Lai, Ashley Yuan, Charis Liu, Jacqueline Chien, Barron Jan, Jeremy Shih, Jester Yang, Jeffrey Yeh University of British Columbia: David Wang, Michael Wu McGill University: Jessie Chang University of Western Ontario: Austin Huang Dalhousie University: Griffin Lee University of Waterloo: Daniel Wang University of Sydney: Tommy Moran Webster University Leiden: Neha Purswaney Yale-NUS College, Singapore: Lucy Davis York University: Priyanka Budhrani

Tanning and Surfing in Cali The Top Left of the Nation

Reed College: Alan Yang University of Oregon: Allen Yin University of Washington, Seattle: Brian Liang

The Southern Life

Emory University: Steven Huang, Jaehee Kwak, Kristina Koh, Leo Chen, Vivian Fan Webster University in St. Louis: Jack Henderschedt East Carolina University: Allison Banks Rice University: Tommy Yuan University of Texas at Austin: Eric Peng

UC Los Angeles: Ellen Chang UC Berkeley: Andrew Wang, Riley Chang, Kyle Yu UC Davis: Vanessa Tran UC Irvine: Kevin Yang Santa Clara University: Andrea Tai, Andrew Chen, Christopher Sung University of Southern California: Darren Chien, Erick Chen, Kristen Pan, Kenny Lin, Magnus Chiu, Derek Wang, Celine Chang, Kevin Hsu, Winnie Lai Harvey Mudd College: Alex Chang California Baptist University: Connor Pacharis Scripps College: Deborah Lin Pitzer College: Jocelyn Chen Chapman University: Shawn Lin, Weber Chen, Maarten Tan Cal Poly Pomona: Ken Huang

SUPER LATIVES

most aesthetic giorgia varchi

most likely to be a dictator

justin rhee

most likely to be found taking a selfie ashley yao

most likely to be found at the gym james hung

worst case of senioritis trisha sinha

most likely to be late to graduation jeremy shih

Didn't have enough of senior superlatives? We took it upon ourselves to present to you a few extra just to see what certain seniors will be remembered for!

TIGER BABIES MEMORIES In Lower School I remember Caleb Brown stuck a pair of scissors inside a power plug and made an explosion during silent reading time. [Also,] I went to Andrew Chow’s birthday party in Lower School once and he hosted it at a really nice venue but I thought it was his house so for the longest time I thought he was a prince. - Jene Sato We were drawing self portraits in Ms. Yamazaki’s Kindergarten class, and I struggled because I

didn’t know how to draw noses. I had just learned how to draw cherries so instead of drawing my nose I drew a cherry in the middle of my self portrait. I vividly remember Eli and Ashley [Yao] making fun of my drawing. - Jeffrey Liao I remember in Mrs. Hobbs’s class when Edmund Tong, now at Carnegie Mellon University, was able to write complete sentences while the rest of the class, including myself, was struggling to spell words, let alone their name. - Bryan Stovicek

Jeffrey Liao and I were best buds on the Kindergarten school bus. One day we randomly discovered that we were cousins, and we avoided each other for years ‘cause cooties. In high school, we got over it, and showed our cousinly love by playing Marius/ Cosette in Les Mis. Today he’s one of my best friends! - Eli Morimoto I raced, I think, this girl, (it was

THOUGHTS TAS is a kind of school that grows on you. I might not have been friends with everyone at school, but I think I’ve become a little bit of everyone. - Jae Hee Kwak

Not only have the people in the Class of 2016 come and gone over the years but the entire campus’ look has changed. I remember the old library, the M&M vending machines, the

DRAMA

like 10 meters probably), she won, and I was jealous and mad salty. - Eric Lin Eli and I used to bully Riley Chang. Eli taught me how to chew up macaroni and cheese and spit at Riley using a straw. It’s kind of ironic how the two shortest girls in the grade were bullying the tallest kid. Sorry for making you cry back then, Riley! - Debbie Lin

feel of actual grass on the field, all before renovations changed the look of TAS. I feel like graduation will be especially nostalgic for us Tiger Babies who have been at TAS our whole lives. - Erick Chen I forgot how to make friends because I didn’t have to for the past 13 years. So I’m kinda worried about college. - Jene Sato

BFF

Tell me a funny story about you two. On our first day of school in Kindergarten, Silvia and I sat on the ground together while our teacher did roll call. When he asked if Silvia was in the room, no one answered. He called her name 3 more times before [Silvia] yelled, “Where’s Silvia?!?!” She forgot her own name on the first day of school. - V Tell me the weirdest thing you two have ever done together.

silvia & veronica Once, during a sleepover, Silvia accidentally threw her brother’s boxers and got it stuck in her hidden ceiling light, overhanging. We spent an hour debating whether or not we should tell an adult and another two hours trying to fish it out with a hanger. It’s still stuck there to this day. -V What lies in the future for you two? Our families live next to each other (literally 1 minute walking

distance) so we see each other EVERY SINGLE DAY. We’re going to the same state (New York) for college, so it’s another four years stuck with her!! Our campuses are a three-minute walking distance away from each other. This is all unintentional though! We always joke about how we are going to be the only two old people present when our grade has our 50 year reunion. That’s how tight we’re going to be. We will probably have graves next to each other. - S

iris & kendra Tell me a funny story about you two. One time (or was it multiple times, I don’t remember) we spent an entire recess running away from Mason the kissy boy. It was actually really scary. - I

BFF

What’s an interesting fact about you guys? [Something unusual about us is that] although we both came to TAS in Kindergarden, we didn’t know about each other’s existence until 5th Grade. We didn’t have any classes together nor any mutual friends, so we just missed out on four years together. - Daphney Tell me the weirdest thing you two have ever done together. When we were playing with X-box

Tell me the weirdest thing you two have ever done together. Apparently, Kendra, Sandra, and I used to hold hands and go to the bathroom together. We didn’t just go into the bathroom together though, we all went into the same

stall. - I What lies in the future for you two? We’ll go to college, graduate, get married, have children, and then come back to TAS (shoutout to Helen from the alumni office!). Our kids will then meet in their KA class and go into the same stalls together to pee and do everything together and be best friends forever. And then eventually our grandkids will do the same. - I

daphney & demi 360 Kinect games, Daphney’s dad suddenly barged into the living room and he told us he was going to teach us self-defense. So we ended up practicing some self-defense moves, but when Daphney’s dad was showing us the final move he ended up accidentally punching Daphney in the eye. The funny thing was instead of helping Daphney out, both Daphney’s dad and I ended up laughing until Daphney told us to stop. - Demi

What lies in the future for you two? We aren’t going to college in the same place, so unfortunately we won’t be able to visit each other often. However, I will definitely make an effort to stay in touch and meet up with her whenever possible. Our friendship definitely stood the test of time, so I am not worried that we will drift apart in the future. We’ve been through a lot of ups and downs, but the fact that we’re still best friends means something. - Daphney

BFF

Thoughts, feelings on graduating? Parting ways? I’ve been here for 14 years and I know I’m going to miss being in this environment but I’m ecstatic to experience new things. Thanks for coming home, Iris. You are the music in me, the basketball to my Chad, the jazz square to my Ryan, the mirror to my Sharpay, the Troy to my Gabriella. Time to step into the future! - K

IN 30 YEARS...

An enthusiastic lover of life.

- Eli Morimoto

Bald, fat, and experiencing a mid-life crisis.

- Silvia Chen

Probably a typical Asian helicopter parent. - YiLin Lee

You will see me pull up in my Harley-Davidson wearing Yeezy Season 23s. - Jason Hsu

Hopefully, Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be happy with the person that I will have become. And if not, I hope I am closing that gap between myself and the person that I wish to be. - Emily Yang

Entrepreneur and engineer. Small family with a wife and two kids. Still happy! $$$$$$$ xD

- Eashawn Luo

Rich and married.

- Gordon Ryoo

FLAS - Jonathan Wang

FORWARD

AS FRESHMEN...

Exposing myself in the locker rooms.

- Darren Chien

Going down the spiral staircase between B4 and B5, and somehow ripping my tendon.

- Alan Yang

I had no friends so I ate lunch at the toilet. I also ate at the fourth floor and sirens started going off: “This is a restricted area. You must leave in 3... 2…” - David Wang

Barely being able to finish the mile run.

- Stephanie Cheung

Went to the bathroom and saw poop on the floor. Picking a fight with a senior.

- Jodelle Lai

- Daniel Wang

I was socialising with some of my friends in the library near a (then) senior who I thought was cute. I didn’t realise my fly was wide open the entire time.

& BACK

- Silvia Chen

#weout

the best of times

Class of 2016

[TAS Yearbook and Darren Chien]

DEAR CLASS OF 2016, Almost every college graduate I’ve talked to has told me that college has been the best time of his/her life. Even though I’m only a freshman, I can already second that.

Carol Chen Class of 2015

Going to college always seemed to be the ultimate goal. Now that I’ve achieved that goal and I’m in college, I have the opportunity to learn how to think deeper and to think for Writing from: myself. I mean, after high school, life does not follow a path University of of linear trajectory. Just because other people are going into Pennsylvania finance, consulting ,and running startups while juggling five different executive positions, it doesn’t mean that you have to do the same. I used to be pretty school averse; college has refueled my life with purpose. Going to school doesn’t seem so bad anymore. Even though half of the time I still don’t know what I’m doing, every minute, I’m learning, failing, exploring, growing, and loving it. The key to success isn’t being successful, per se, but being resilient. After getting rejected by more than ten different things that I’ve applied to and interviewed for throughout the year, I quickly learned how to suck it up and move on. Stop expecting yourself to be #1. The key to fulfillment is to work hard (on something that you truly care about!), dream big, but be realistic too. Some of the smartest people I know here are also those who run on coffee every second and work the hardest. Shocking, I know. The best part about college is perhaps the freedom to shape yourself into who you want to be. Your identity is always changing, and Mom also isn’t there to shape your life anymore. The truth is, she wouldn’t know any more than you do when it comes to decisions because, ultimately, it is your life and your choice. Everything is entirely up to you. To all seniors out there, you’ll definitely face a lot of challenges going into college – whether it be struggling with homesickness or trying to find your niche and take good care of yourself and your money. Just know that you’ll find yourself in various kinds of supportive communities with many incredible people who you can count on. So, really, don’t worry too much. After all, aren’t you already so blessed with the opportunity for a college education? There are also some truths that never change: always remember that kindness and compassion go a long way. Don’t ever be afraid to reassess your life, make micro/macro adjustments to your life, or start all over again. Be open to new experiences and new relationships. You’d never know where they would take you down the road. With that, I wish you all the best as you embark on a new chapter in life!

LOOKING AHEAD

SUMMER IN TAIWAN BUCKET LIST

When someone asks, “What are you going to miss the most?” For most of us, our answer includes the vicinity of our location. We’ve been special enough to have been immersed in the beauty of Taiwanese culture; and for many of us, this is the hardest part of our high school experience to leave. Thankfully, we still have a little bit of time to squeeze in and revisit all the must-do’s in Taiwan before we head off to college. Make sure you put these on your list:

• • • • • • • • • • • • •

ACTIVITIES:

U-bike adventure Visit the night market Go shrimping Explore cafes in Taipei Travel somewhere in Taiwan outside of Taipei Lantern wish in Shifen Hike up Elephant Mountain Go to BaiShaWan beach Go to the Taipei Zoo/Ride the gondola Explore MRT stops that you’ve never been to Enjoy legality! (Only if you’re legal) Hot springs in Yehliu Win a game of Mahjong

FOOD:

• 牛肉麵 Beef noodles • 關東煮 from 7-11 • 刨冰 Shaved ice • 豆花 Curd dessert

• 木瓜牛奶 Papaya milk • 雞蛋糕 Egg cake • 臭豆腐 Stinky tofu • 蚵仔煎 Oyster omelette • 甜不辣 Tempura • 鹵味 Stewed goods • 鹽酥雞 Fried chicken

THANK YOU NOTES Mr. Brundage: you inspire me like no other. You are the most dedicated/ intelligent/hilarious coach out there. I am truly lucky to have crossed paths with you. TAS will miss you. #tigerbloodrunstoodeep - Eli Morimoto Thank you Mr. Emanuel for providing college advice and just being a friendly person in the hallway. The college process was much easier with your guidance! - Emily Lin

Thank you Mr. Montgomery. You were weirdly the most inspiring yet chill teacher I ever had. - Bonna Yi Thank you Ms. Chiang for listening to all your students problems no matter how busy you are. Thank you ultimately for being a friendlike figure but also someone your students can learn from. - Silvia Chen Thank you Mr. Brown for inspiring me to take interest in history. - Alan Yang

Ms. Kao, thank you for four years of art. Your art classroom will always feel like home to me. - Josie Chen Thanks Dr. Smith for supporting the UPC and hip-hop culture in TAS! - Jonathan Wang

writing Chang

Thank you Mr. Arnold for inspiring me to try my hardest. Without you, I probably would’ve just gave up on studying and my research paper. - Jessie

Thank you Ms. Stephanie Chiang for being someone I can confide in, for being curious about my life and for caring about me. Thank you Dr. Bayntun for not kicking me out of your class and not letting me drop from Honors. Thank you Dr. Teresa Chiang for getting me into college, and for spelling my name Darrien. Thank you Ms. Cheng for being forgiving and giving me a second chance when I cheated on my quiz! Thank you Mr. Ives for your expertise, your wit/ intelligence and for being a great role model.- Darren Chien Thank you to Señora Hartzell for bringing passion to every single Spanish class. Thank you to Dr. Hartzell for opening my eyes to genuine literature and how to best understand it. Thank you to Ms. Kundel for all your hard work for the sake of our student publication! :-) Thank you to Mr. Emanuel and Mr. Lowman for being awesome and approachable and understanding and professional, all at once. - Emily Yang

Thank you Mr. Orensky for teaching me the values of hard work, as well as helping me push through the traumatizing curriculum of AP Chemistry. Your humor is one of a kind and your disses are always concise and straight to the point. Never has a person hurt my feelings so hard with so few words! I will miss you greatly Mr. O! Enjoy your retirement! - Jason Hsu Thank you Dr. Chiang and Mr. Clapper: Our bond from iGEM cannot be put into words! I truly enjoyed every moment we had in Boston. - Bryan Tseng Mr Paxton, thank you so much for your help and support through this year of math. As you know, for me, math is like climbing Mount Everest, it doesn’t get easier, but I get better. You have helped me get better and I will take the skills I have learned from you to college and into life. - Connor Pacharis

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