The Log, Tabor's Student Newspaper - November 2019

T he L og thelog@taboracademy.org

Tabor Academy’s Student Newspaper Volume 94, Number 2

November 2019

Seawolf Spirit On Campus

Tabor Day Brings Community Together

by Jack Marshall

Fun, upbeat, and beautiful were just three of the many words that Mr. Leary used to describe this year’s Tabor Day. Every year at the beginning of October, Tabor holds its version of Homecoming. This day, known as Tabor Day, was brought back to Tabor in the fall of 2017 and has attracted many parents, alumni, and friends ever since.

of Tabor Hall of Fame inductions, the Athletic Department decided to pause them this year to recognize alumni for other contributions.

Honorees were chosen to be recognized at Tabor’s inaugural Circle of Excellence reception for their overall contribution and excellence in the world. This year Elizabeth Taber, Walter Lillard, William Phelps ’74, Jacqueline Shire ’84, Jonathan Callaghan ’87, and Amy Richards ’88 were inducted into the Circle of Excellence for their “passion, philanthropy, vision, values, ingenuity, pursuit of innovation, and devotion to human rights and fostering world peace,” according to the Office of Alumni and Development.

Although the name Tabor Day is fairly new, the Tabor community has always engaged in a community-wide celebration of school spirit, most recently known Holderness Day. What was Holderness Day? Well, every year on one chilly November morning, the Tabor community either trekked up to New Hampshire or had Holderness School come down to take part in games. For many years, Holderness was considered Tabor’s biggest rival; but since Tabor was put in the ISL, there has been no recognized rival. These past few years, most teams have played Thayer Academy, with the football team being the exception playing Belmont Hill. Some highlights, according to Finn McCain ’21, included “Winning my soccer game 5-1.” Ms. Leit, one of the athletic trainers, claimed that her favorite part of the day was “watching the girls’ varsity soccer team compete against a very talented opponent.”

Photo by Samantha Barney

Whether it be alumni games, food trucks, or the Circle of Excellence, Tabor Day was filled with fun, competitiveness, and pride—a great day to be a Seawolf.

In addition to the current students’ outdoor festivities and games, Tabor Day is an important day for alumni. Throughout this year’s Tabor Day, alums played in reunion games, taking part in sailing, hockey, and basketball games just before the afternoon activities commenced. Mr. Leary, Class of 1997, said that the games, “bring back great memories for alums.”

A new event this year was the Circle of Excellence. After three years

Spotted: Danish Students at Tabor

by Renni Collins

During the week of October 6, a group of students from Denmark visited the Tabor campus. They spent about a week here at school, joining classes and activities and becoming familiar with the day in the life of Tabor students.

Emma Bjerrum, a senior from Copenhagen, explains that their school mainly focuses on math and science, so she was especially interested to see MIT and Harvard while visiting Boston. She states that her favorite part of being at Tabor was the “impressive school with fun classes and activities.” Emma especially enjoyed the art classes since they don’t have as many classes that can be used as a creative outlet. In terms of the student body, she was pleasantly surprised by how welcoming and open the Tabor community is, noting the numerous greetings she received and the warm introductions. She explained, “This is something that you rarely see in Denmark.”

Mr. DaSilva, Associate Director of the International Center,

coordinates the partnership between Tabor and the Rysensteen Gymnasium in Copenhagen. The program’s objective is to allow students to learn in a global context from students around the world through face-to-face discussions. In terms of the relationship between the two schools, Mr. DaSilva explains, “While the first visit to Tabor of Rysensteen students and faculty was in the fall of 2017, the agreement to join the partnership and network of schools was decided in 2016. Tabor sends as many students as Rysensteen sends us, usually 28. Besides spring sports trips, this is one of the largest group excursions at Tabor. Due to the nature of the trip, only juniors and seniors can apply and attend, and the split is usually 50/50, give or take. Upperclassmen who are interested in the trip fill out applications and go through a vetting process.”

Mr. DaSilva encourages juniors and seniors interested in attending the Denmark trip next spring to apply and take advantage of this incredible opportunity.

Please recycle this paper.

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Physicist As Well As Historian Mr. Pierce Begins Writing a Book

by Tracy Fang

Mr. Pierce has researched the school’s history and faculty over the years. Last spring, he gave a speech on the visual history of Tabor.

After that presentation, Mr. Quirk approached him to ask if he would be interested in writing a Tabor history book.

It all started with a book, written by previous faculty member Joe Smart, and published in 1960. Mr. Smart recorded all the school’s major events until 1960.

Smart’s key point, Mr. Pierce is going to discuss the presence of girls and why they disappeared from the school and then came back in 1979, and what their absence has to do with the school’s decision to brand itself a “boys’ school.”

However, Mr. Pierce decided to make a very different presentation from Smart: “[Smart’s book] is dry and humorless, and I want to inject humor and some funny things.” He’s sending snippets of his book to the school throughout the year. Recently, he sent an email about the propeller in the library, for example. While Mr. Pierce was going through Smart’s history, he noticed that the presence of girls is not prominent. After examining the Logs, the yearbook, and records of trustee events, he noted the lack of girls. Only one picture of girls in a band was presented before the 1980s.

Photo by Gary Lawrence

As he writes this book, he perceives different histories presented by different perspectives. “I’m seeing [history] from 2019 perspective while Smart’s was from the 30s and 40s and 50s perspective,” Mr. Mr. Pierce starts his book with two parts: a chronology of events and Pierce explained. As time has gone forward and the social environment biography. Also, there will be an appendix of general interest to all has changed, the two authors have different views of reference. For people who had experience at Tabor and lists of enrollment statistics. example, the inadequate representation of girls could reflect different periods of society. In the 30s, America did not offer women much He is researching and writing at the same time. He says, “I have a parity, but women are more often included nowadays—as today’s record of major events. I have been at Tabor for almost 50 years…But population of girls at Tabor reflects. What was happening at Tabor I cannot remember exactly when it happened and the details. That’s could possibly have mirrored American society at that time. why I have to go through The Log to pull it together.” He has gone through all the old Log issues and is trying to find anything interesting While there will be more faculty, more students, and more events, to include in the book. But the problem comes when some issues are there are more stories to tell. “The story I told is just part of the missing, creating some gaps in the chronology of events. After having history,” as Mr. Pierce said. In other words, the story doesn’t end here. worked through the (Headmaster) Lillard, Wickenden, and Webster years, he is now on the Stroud years, and the Quirk years are next.

“It’s getting closer,” Mr. Pierce says.

“Nothing is said about girls prior to 1957 when they were here.”

According to Mr. Pierce, “Girls are unfairly treated [in the last version].

So I’m going to retell the founding story of Tabor.” While summarizing

Running and Teaching: Julia O’Rourke

by Izzy Cheney

After her graduation from Bowdoin College this past May, Julia O’Rourke ’15 traveled to Seoul, South Korea, to teach English to South Korean students as a part of the Fulbright fellowship program. She spent the first few weeks at Yonsei University in Seoul where she took Korean language and culture adjustment classes. Julia explained that Korea has one of the largest cohorts of Fulbright teachers, which has helped her transition to the country.

She has begun the academic year teaching high school boys at a local Christian school. She teaches fourteen classes of twenty-five sophomore and junior boys for a total of twenty hours per week.

She remarked that their English skills are impressive. “They know vocabulary that American high school students might not know, but they struggle with conversational skills.” When she’s not teaching or planning lessons, she is doing chores, just like the other children in her host family.

One of Julia’s favorite memories so far is when her host mom took her out for sushi the night before her first day of classes. Her host mom was “immediately so maternal” and the sushi date was “something her [own] mom would have done in the US.” Another highlight of her immersion so far is the kimchi. “I love eating kimchi with every meal,” Julia confessed.

One of her biggest challenges has been needing a routine. “I’m really

For students with the opportunity to travel to a foreign country, Julia suggested, “We’re all a lot more capable of experiencing a new way of life than we think we are…cultures are very different but a lot of things are the same everywhere.” She also emphasized that it’s important to learn about yourself. She confessed, “I’m a total homebody, so for so long I had written off the idea of doing something like this.”

Realizing that she almost didn’t do this alarms her the most. Still, she has brought a sense of both trust and optimism to this experience, for which her motto so far has been, “Leap and the net will appear.”

Photo courtesy Julia O’Rourke

After orientation in Seoul, she traveled to Mokpo, a fishing port on the southern coast of the country, to meet her homestay for the coming year. She noted that her host family is lovely but that they have had a few instances of misunderstanding one another. The language and cultural barriers can be difficult. For example, saying “Bless you” after someone sneezes is not the custom in South Korea. When Julia said bless you, her host family tried to recruit her for a faith group. Thus, she concluded that “there’s no one who can understand you quite like those who are also doing Fulbright.”

used to structuring my life like in college and high school, and having running be naturally a part of that schedule.” Despite this need for a routine, her host family often does things without much advance notice, like full-day hikes. Additionally, little things like the coffee shops opening late add to the difficulty of settling into a routine.

However, Julia said, “I’m getting better at going with the flow.”

How To Beat The Winter Blues

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by Yujin Hong

If you are feeling down in the winter, you are not alone, nor is it atypical. Many students find themselves feeling low in the winter.

“Winter can be a particularly challenging time of year for your mental health, especially in the northeast area of America,” comments Director of Health Services Julie Przybyszewski.

First, get more sunlight. “If you feel you are depressed every winter and it’s a pattern, you might want to consult a doctor or try phototherapy,” she says. Phototherapy is a prescription treatment that involves exposure to ultraviolet light that resembles sunlight through artificial lighting. Second, get more exercise. Ms. Przybyszewski notes, Ms. Przybyszweski explains, “There is a “Exercise releases endorphins, a naturally disorder called seasonal affective disorder. happy chemical.” Next, keep yourself wellIt results in symptoms like lower moods and nourished. Ms. Przybyszewski adds, “The depression because of a lack of sunlight.” saying ‘you are what you eat’ is true.”

Although the level of seasonal affective She recommends adding more fruits and disorder varies from being diagnosed vegetables to your diet, especially the dark clinically to feeling lower than usual, keeping green leafy ones. Last, get an adequate mental health in the winter is a very real amount of sleep, but not too much. Ms. Przybyszweski cautions, “Teenagers actually struggle. need more sleep than younger kids as they According to Ms. Przybyszweski, less sunlight, are undergoing so much growth. They should lack of exercise and activity due to colder not be getting any less than 7 hours of sleep, weather, and academic rigor and stress all and preferably 8 to 9 hours.” contribute to lower moods in the winter. She also offers a few tips to beat the winter blues. The school can provide fun games and activities to support mental health for

students. “We are talking about doing some mid-school day activities, to do something fun together, step away from the work at school, and destress,” says Dean of Students Tim Cleary. “Something like racing remote control cars around the English or History wing, or playing Wii in the mailbox area.” He advises, “Get out and get to things—the winter has lots of outstanding opportunities like the musical, home games, the winter concert— and spend time with the people at school that you really like to spend time with.”

The Counseling Service is open and available for all students struggling through the winter months. Director of Counseling Dan Petrocelli says, “We offer individual counseling, a place that’s private and confidential where students cannot be judged for what they are thinking and can trust that anything they say is okay to say.” He adds, “Connect with people, don’t isolate. Then, get help if you need it, from a professional, your advisor, your friends.”

What do you do to beat the winter blues? “go to the gym and play sports” “Listen to Bruno Mars”

Graph by Eari Nakano

“Curl up by the fire with my dog” “Spend lots of time with my friends” “Polar Plunge!!!”

Many Roads Lead to College Bottom Line: You Will Be Fine

by Grace Crowley

As a new school year begins, countless students are asking themselves the same question: “Will I get into college?” This fear troubles seniors as they apply for college, juniors as they prepare for numerous standardized tests, and even underclassmen as they work to enhance their grade point averages. While there is the ubiquitous fear of not getting into college, experts on the topic offer some advice to clear up misconceptions.

are choosing them, saying “Prospective students are actually the biggest drivers of the process. With over 3,000 colleges and Lydia Mann, Director of Admissions Outreach universities to choose from in this country, at Clark University, shares advice from you select a small group of schools to which the other end of the admissions process. you’ll apply.” With this information, students Many students wonder how much their can alleviate the pressure of needing to be underclassman years will affect their college “chosen” by a college. applications. “Each college is different. As Altogether, the college admissions process you begin to narrow down your application is not as clear-cut as many people suggest list, you should ask the colleges you are most it to be. An underwhelming SAT score or interested in attending how they review rough grades early in high school will not transcripts. Are they concerned with ninth necessarily make or break an application. grade or is an upward trajectory all they want to see?” While some colleges look for high achievement throughout all of high school, others will be most impressed if they see growth. She agrees with Mrs. Barlow-Boesch regarding test-optional schools, saying, “If you have strong SAT and/or ACT scores and want to share them, feel free. You would compare your scores to the mid-50% in each college’s pool to determine a ‘strong score’.

However, not sharing them will not hurt a student in the process at a test-optional institution.” She also adds that students are choosing the schools more than the schools Photo by Tracy Fang

According to Mrs. Barlow-Boesch from Tabor college counseling, one of the biggest misconceptions is that the college application process has to be stressful. “If students are organized and true to themselves in terms of what they aspire towards, it doesn’t have to be overwhelming.” Regarding the fear of not getting into college, Mrs. Barlow-Boesch says there are “layers of support and so many great options out there. College counseling has a plan in place to help everyone.”

Furthermore, test scores aren’t everything as more schools become test-optional. “I think it’s awesome that a growing number of schools are becoming test-optional. High school is a much better assessment than four hours on a Saturday morning,” says

Mrs. Barlow-Boesch. She also says that testoptional colleges never penalize students for omitting their test scores.

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Tabor’s Got Talent

by Hailey Cohen

Dineen says, “For me, the piece of open mic Everybody makes music. Whether it’s in that’s so important is that it gives kids an the shower, in the car, or hanging out with opportunity, an outlet, to try music and try to friends, everybody has that one song that do it in public. I mean, it’s a really safe place they can’t help but sing along to. Some of us to do it and with a pretty high quality sound are more musically inclined than others, but system and a really nice room and a pretty everyone interacts with it in some way. Open big crowd.” This gave me some insight into mic night offers a space to share the music we how open mic night shapes the music culture at Tabor. It allows students to experiment make informally and without judgment. with different music styles and delve deeper Recently, I had a chance to go to open mic into the topic without taking a formal class night and experience the atmosphere of the on it. Open mic night is a tradition at Tabor event. While I was there, I started thinking that allows students to explore their passions about music at Tabor. I knew of a lot of formal without committing to a year-long course. music offerings, but open mic night was one of the only casual spaces to share music. I Open mic night also offers a chance for our wondered how this event had an impact on community to bond. Sharing music that is the students who wanted a place to express dear to us allows other people to relate and find comfort in that. It enables others to put their passion. their emotions on display and get a positive Faculty supervisor for open mic night, Mr. response back. Music can create a strong

bond that brings our community together. I observed that everyone cheers each other on at open mic night. I did not hear one negative comment, and everyone was very supportive of each other. This uplifting environment allows students to comfortably and safely explore their interests, an essential process in any community.

Music fits into all of our lives. We use it to help us study, pump us up for a big game, or give us confidence before an important presentation. Music is versatile, and open mic night offers a chance to take advantage of all that it can do. Students have the chance to express themselves with something that they’ve worked hard on—or perform just for fun. Open mic night is an integral part of our community and how we express ourselves through music.

Featured Artist: Max Mignatti

by Eari Nakano

Max has always been influenced by art growing up, as it continues to be a big part of

her identity today. She says, “It’s a way I can express myself without actually using words.

With art, I can release everything that’s happening in my brain into the outside world as a form of expression. I also think it’s cool how art allows people to identify and portray themselves in a way that cannot be done otherwise.” She explains that her inspiration is taken from all areas, never just one. She says, “I guess anything inspires me. I kind of start with a broad idea and narrow it down to something smaller until I find a concept I really want to work with.” Though she has experimented with countless styles, she is particularly fascinated by the concept and the freedom of collages. She adds, “[Collages have] a way of making the crazy look beautiful and lovely. And, in a way, I think this unifies people.”

do want to keep in touch with my artistic side as much as I can. I grew up surrounded by artists, so I want to try to maintain and create relationships with as many artists as I can.”

Photo by Tracy Fang

The Tabor community is a melting pot of talents across all curricula, including academics, arts, and athletics, encouraging individuals to discover their identities. Max Mignatti, a senior seawolf from Spain had taken advantage of her opportunity and resources at Tabor to dive into her creative side and develop her art skills. Producing paintings, videos, and even clothing, Max has explored numerous genres of art throughout her Tabor career, taking risks as she takes on new art styles. Her inspiration comes from well-known artists such as Jean Michelle Basquiat and Alexander McQueen. However, her artistic influence stems not only from famous people, but also from the people around her. She explains, “my friend Kate Bellm is a huge inspiration of mine, as well as Suna Wathen, my friend’s mom.”

While Max will not be pursuing art as her main focus in college or in the future, she says, “I

Two Plays Hit the Stage This Fall

by Renni Collins

by any combination of actors, which is a big plus when you want to work with as many students as possible.” This play takes on the challenge of bringing to life modern disputes of love and communication between people.

well written in terms of how the playwright beautifully captures the essence of each character working through a key moment in a relationship. Also, because each scene involves strong emotions such as love, hate, Mr. Heavey, director of Almost, Maine works trust, and betrayal, I felt both the actors and with a cast of 12 actors, a stage manager, and the audience would easily become engaged a tech person. He describes Almost, Maine as in the material.” the stories of the people who live in the makebelieve very small town of Almost, Maine. He says, “The play consists of eight 2-character scenes, each of which explores a different relationship at different points of evolution: break-ups, first loves, enduring friendships, etc.” According to him, “Almost, Maine also explores the often unpredictable nature of love and friendship and how magical moments can occur in even the most deeply ingrained relationships. Each scene has a ‘magical’ moment!” Mr. Heavey chose this play because “the dialogue in each scene is so

Photo by Gary Lawrence

The two fall dramas this year are Almost, Maine and Love and Information. Both center on the common theme of love—its interpretation and perspective. The drama Love and Information is “[more than] forty short scenes depicting modern life and love in the age of information,” says Ms. Hawley. The scenes range from less than a minute to a few minutes in duration. Cast member Janie Scheerer explains that the play incorporates scenes that range from break-ups to epiphanies. Ms. Hawley, who directs Love and Information, explains the intentions of this particular play, saying, “I picked this play to perform because I think it lays out both what is difficult and what is beautiful about our modern connected existence in a very relatable way. I find the writing insightful and deep, but also really funny. Another big reason I picked it because it is very flexible—the roles can be performed

Album Review: The Fall of Hobo Johnson

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by Ben Ackerman

Hobo Johnson does not make the type of music that I typically listen to, but his most recent project The Fall of Hobo Johnson caught my attention when several online music critics offered wildly different reviews. For example, respected Youtuber Anthony Fantano gave the album an 8/10, while the music site Pitchfork gave the album a 3.6/10. These starkly contrasting scores indicate that Johnson makes unique and polarizing music, and a quick listen to the 2019 album The Fall of Hobo Johnson completely validates that theory. Johnson, a 24-year-old rapper from Southern California, combines hip-hop with spoken word poetry, funk, EDM, and rock for an entirely original sound. He has incredibly diverse influences: His voice is reminiscent of Chance the Rapper; he incorporates elements of Beck’s style; and he bears some similarities to Quinn XCII. His latest album features reflections on his struggles with girls, commentary on homelessness (he was kicked out of his house as a teenager), and random thoughts that appear to have just popped into his head.

Awayer.” It is a piano-driven hip-hop tune that reminds the listener of “Baby Blue,” Action Bronson’s 2015 hit. Johnson uses the lyrics to illustrate the sadness that arose when his girlfriend moved away. He thinks aloud, “She makes my Mondays feel like Fridays/She makes my Ruby Tuesdays taste like Benihanas,” and “My girl moved away, huh/ Can’t help but think it’s something that I said.” Other highlights on the album include “Subaru Crosstek XV,” “All in My Head,” and “Uglykid.”

Some are serious, some are goofy, but all four feature interesting instrumentals and well-executed vocals.

To be blunt, Hobo Johnson’s music is fairly weird, but that’s just who he is. He’s an unusual musician who is unabashedly emotional. There are moments where he is incredibly relatable, moments where he delivers a punch line like a stand-up comedian, and points where he makes the listener ask, “What the hell is this guy even talking about?”

The Fall of Hobo Johnson isn’t for everyone, but it is a thoughtful piece of alternative music that is perfect if you are looking for something My favorite song on the album is the second track, titled “Mover you’ve never heard before.

Book Review: The Binding

by Hailey Cohen

your soul.”

This novel is perfect for a rainy day, as its The Binding portrays Emmet in his dark and atmospheric tone goes perfectly experience as an apprentice bookbinder, with a cloudy sky and a cup of tea. If you seeing firsthand the horrors and sorrows that enjoy slightly disturbing novels that make people want to be taken away. The writing you ponder the importance of remembering style has an eerie quality. Throughout the our pasts, The Binding is definitely worth the story, even if nothing particularly frightening read. was happening, the way the author described the scenes was off-putting and unsettling.

This novel also has some sexually explicit and graphically violent scenes, so it is not for the faint of heart. However, the author managed to create a winding narrative about the power of memories. Without our memories, we are not our true selves. We are shaped by both our good experiences and our bad ones. Nonetheless, shouldn’t it be acceptable to want to take away horrible experiences?

These are the types of topics this book will make you think about.

Cover art for the book

The novel The Binding by Bridget Collins is a dark yet whimsical story about the power of memories and storytelling. This story follows a young man named Emmet Farmer who is taken into apprenticeship by a bookbinder and taken from his old life into an entirely new world. In this world, books are a person’s memories taken out of their minds and put into the pages. They cannot get those memories back unless the book is burned.

This book raises questions about whether it is better to forget the horrible things or to remember them, and the importance of having control over our own minds: “Which was worse? To feel nothing, or to grieve for something you no longer remembered?

Surely when you forgot, you’d forget to be sad, or what was the point? And yet that numbness would take part of your self away, it would be like having pins and needles in

Movie Review: Lady Bird

by Yujin Hong

Written and directed by Greta Gerwig, American actress, screenwriter, and film director, Lady Bird is the first movie for which Gerwig is solely credited. Set in her own hometown of Sacramento, California, Gerwig writes a semi-autobiographical screenplay based on both her imagination and her own memories.

Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson, wonderfully played by Saoirse Ronan, is the protagonist of the film. Fiercely outspoken and emotionally volatile, our heroine is perhaps hard to like, but even harder not to love. To Lady Bird, asserting her own individuality while trying to discover that individuality remains a struggle. She gets

mad when her parents call her Christine instead of Lady Bird, her “given name” which is, as she proclaims, “given to me by myself.”

Then, she pretends to be a different person, smoking cigarettes and making awkward, insincere death threats, trying to look cool to a boy.

Compelling, relatable, and down-to-earth, Lady Bird is a wonderful coming-of-age tale that tells the story of a lovable yet flawed young girl, facing the challenges of youth and growing up to fit bigger shoes. Its message that growing up is a struggle, but it will all be okay in the end is both powerful and Lady Bird strikes many chords with necessary for teenagers and their parents, adolescents who are figuring out who both lost in the puzzle of adolescence. they want to be in their lives, with relatable themes such as mother-daughter relationships, college applications, and awkward, amateurish dating. At one point, Marion tells her daughter, “I want you to be the very best version of yourself that you can be.” Lady Bird, insecure and unsure of herself, asks despairingly, “What if this is the best version?” Marion then makes a face— there is no way. you really think so?—which tells so much more than words. This moment is both relatable and heartwarming for any teens who doubt their future and self-worth and for their parents who see the sparkling light in their children, light the children can’t see themselves.

Cover art for the movie

Unlike most stories of adolescents in which authors look back on youth with glamorized nostalgia, Lady Bird is not your typical coming-of-age movie. By exposing all the not-so-pretty feelings and struggles of adolescents without embellishing the film with sweet, fairytale-like moments, Greta Gerwig puts together a beautiful masterpiece with a stunningly accurate portrayal of youth.

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Who is Peter Murray?

by Eari Nakano

Q: What is your greatest fear?

Dating and courtship.

Q: Which living being do you most admire?

That’s kind of difficult because there’s a lot of dead ones. But I guess Father Bill. He’s an elderly priest and plays the organ mostly because he’s retired.

Q: When and where are you the happiest?

I suppose between the Lyndons at oftentimes.

Q: On what occasion do you lie?

I try not to lie because it’s bad form, and Thomas Aquinas will be very disappointed. I don’t necessarily lie but when someone asks to get something out of me I will try not to speak. If you want people to think well of you, don’t speak. Silence is better than lying.

Q: What is your most treasured possession?

Probably my Rosary. It was blessed by my priest. I always carry it with me.

Q: Where would you most like to live?

I mean, I guess Vienna would be fun to live in.

Q: What do you consider your greatest achievement?

That’s hard, there are just so many to choose from. We used to have Freaky Friday in the library, I guess there was once an instrument that looked like a cheese grater and I said I bet its a spaetzle maker, and I was right. I had never seen one or eaten one. That was incredible.

Q: Which historical figure do you most identify with? Why? I do find some admiration for Blaise Pascal, I have read the Wikipedia page for him and his most famous book, the Pensées. French for thoughts. I sort of relate to my ideas, though, with Thomas Aquinas but I don’t want to compare myself to such an immense figure.

Q: Who is your hero of fiction?

I would probably say the character Guy Crouchback, from Evelyn Waugh’s terrific trilogy. Everyone should just read it.

Q: What is your motto?

“Why wear short pants when you can wear long pants.”

Horoscopes

by Georgia Toland

Scorpio (October 23 - November 21): Say hello to someone you don’t know. Say good morning to someone you see working hard.

Sometimes making others feel good goes a long way and can make you feel great while you do so! Be kind!

Sagittarius (November 22 - December 21): You need a reminder that your destiny is under your control. Your actions determine your trajectory so stay focused! Make a list of your goals and what you need to do to get you there. Good luck—you got this!

Capricorn (December 22 - January 19): Don’t invest too much energy in worrying about what others think about you. You do you. Do whatever makes you happy, especially if that’s following your own path rather than that of the crowd.

Aquarius (January 20 - February 18): Embrace doing things a little differently this week! Change is good and sometimes desperately needed to avoid falling into a funk! So shake up the mundane things and try something out of the ordinary.

Pisces (February 19 - March 20): Keep your head up and find the little things to look forward to! A break coming up, a few hours of “metime,” or even a phone call with a friend will make you feel better in the next few days.

Aries (March 21 - April 19): Keep dreaming big! Your ambition and talent will set you on the road to achieving your goals, but make sure you give your car enough gas to get you there! Treat yourself well and don’t neglect your needs for the month of November.

Taurus (April 20- May 20): Your relationships may seem to be going through a rocky patch recently, making you feel conflicted regarding your inner emotions. Do whatever you feel is right, but make sure to give your heart some breathing room.

Gemini (May 21 - June 20): You’re allowed to make changes for the future. Now is a great time to adjust anything you’re not entirely satisfied with and make it best suited for you! Make sure these tweaks are not self-sabotaging and instead are sending you in a positive direction.

Cancer (June 21 - July 22): If an unanticipated opportunity presents itself to you, say yes. Impulsiveness often leads to the best memories.

So rather than overthinking, take the chance to say yes and try something new. You might find you enjoy being spontaneous.

Leo (July 23 - August 22): Don’t live with regrets. It may be hard to accept, but the past is in the past. There are no changes that can be made to what is already done. Focus on moving on from past traumas, forgiving yourself and others, and working on your best self!

Virgo (August 23 - September 22): Press pause on the background noise and focus on your goals this week! You have been doing great, but you should push yourself extra hard to be the best that you can be. You got this!

Libra (September 23 - October 22): Speak up about any problems you are experiencing. Communication often leads to a calmer conscience and deeper connections, so open up to those around you about your struggles this month and see if it helps to make you feel better.