Laura Laughlin Magazine Project

STRESSED

for the modern teen

march 2018

SUMMER STYLE GUIDE for the lazy & anxious page 8

QUIZ: What style suits your personality? page 10

ILLIZA ZAPPA-FINTA The former teen idol that kept us all wondering. pages 6-7

This month’s guide to schoolwork advice page 13

BEING A GOOD STUDENT

- and why it takes a lot of courage an argumentative essay page 13

tAbLe Of CoNtEnTs 6-7...illiza zappa finta tells all 8...summer style guide for the lazy & anxious 10-11... QUIZ: What style suits your personality?

12-13...get over your fear (with the cast of The Fosters) 16...this month’s guide to schoolwork

18-19...interview with a mental health professional 21...how to talk to your parents about mental health

22-23...why being a good student takes courage 24...College vs. High School students: who has it worse?

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6

Teen Idol in Trouble

a 27-year-old Illiza Zappa discusses her struggle with fame, fortune, and mental health “I like to feel closed in,” says Illiza Zappa-Finta, wearing a lush

faux fur coat and thin pair of sunglasses that barely cover her eyes. I’m sitting across from her in a coffee shop called The Lou, a little spot that rests in the corner of LA, where you’ll find less kale-eating California folk, and more homesick foreigners looking to find a piece of home. “LA, you knowit’s where I’m supposed to be. My friends are here. My job is here...but I miss home, as expected. So I like how tiny it is here. Because that’s how Manhattan felt. Like a shoebox, but one with more than shoes. A shoebox with a bunch of friggin stuff in it.”

An average person knows the name, but may not recognize the face of Zappa-Finta, the now 25-year-old social media influencer who makes a living off of Instagram sponsorships and L’Oreal campaigns. Coming from a family of actors, she got her start as a toddler in a series of commercials- from Chex, to diapers, to candy- and became a sensation in her self-lead Nickelodeon smash, aptly entitled “ZAPPA!”. When the world gained knowledge of Zappa’s talent, she took media by storm- magazines, Entertainment Weekly, blogs, everything known to man- and soon, Illiza Zappa was an iconic household name. Though it may have seemed glamorous from the outside, Zappa-Finta declares that everything was not as it seemed.

“My life was mostly miserable,” says Zappa-Finta of her teenage years.

“Becoming famous at a young age caused me to mature very quickly, in a bad way.” The young starlet shares the story of her youth over a cup of hot tea, with the slightest hint of a smile on her face- a smile that hints she’s reliving the events she describes. “I was never happy, not entirely. I didn’t realize at the time that it was depression.”

And depression it was- Zappa would go on to star in ZAPPA! for five years, and left the show completely A-list. Everyone wanted to know the actress’s next move, whether it be movies, music videos, or more TV- the public was on the edge of its proverbial seat when The Impenetrable Illiza was set free from her network shackles. This public was surprised, however, to see her next move in reality.

The press became plastered with Zappa’s face at the pace of a bullet train again, though this time the reasoning was considerably sour. An eighteenyear-old Illiza Zappa had made her post-TV debut by acting out: in the matter of minutes she went from America’s sweetheart to notorious troublemaker- paparazzi catching the girl in previously unthinkable situationsfrom dressing scantily to snorting cocaine to having a “night out” with John Mayer, Zappa’s reputation had been tarnished.

“I just wanted to feel something. When [ZAPPA!] ended, it wasn’t just a TV show to me. That was my entire life. My whole identity. When it stopped, all I wanted to do was find an identity. I was so misguided that I thought I could find it in rebellion,” Zappa puts her tongue in her cheek and stops talking, but chooses to end her statement with a simple shake of the head.

7

Zappa’s trail of failure didn’t stop after her spate of rule-breaking, in fact it went on for quite a long time- when the actress decided to stop her bad decisions and attempt to get her life, and career, back on track. This was when she announced her plans for a big production- a Broadway adaptation of “ZAPPA!”, which she invested all of her leftover time and money in, just to get it up and running. Though the idea of such a play brought up buzz, Zappa’s hopes would soon be thwarted in a surprise lawsuit- from Nickelodeon.

“They were not wrong, at all,” says Zappa, “I was dense, and so were the people that I hung around. I only got feedback from yes-men, and not the critical thinker that I needed.”

Nickelodeon would go on to take Zappa to court, in which she would lose her life savings (about $10.2 million), and it looked as if life was over for the formerly successful actress. Soon Zappa was nowhere to be seen, and her acting career appeared to be completely in the dust.

Quite a few years later, many believed the illustrious career of Illiza Zappa to be history. Virtually out of nowhere, the former actress came back onto the scenebut in an entirely different fashion.

“Not many people see being an influencer as a career,” says Zappa, “and initially it bugged me. Until I realized that finding this new career path was a blessing bigger than I had ever thought it could be.”

“For my entire life I had dealt with this soul-crushing loneliness. After a while I just thought it was how everyone felt...until I went down this new path. I was enjoying my work, and I was finally what happy truly is...I know it’s a bit of a joke, being an Instagram model, making my money off of advertisements, but I feel creatively freer than I ever have. It’s an amazing feeling.”

After a year or so of casual Instagram modeling, Zappa (now Zappa-Finta, after her recent marriage to comedian Joel Finta), has garnered just over ten million followers, and her net worth is estimated to be back in high numbers. Though it was a bumpy, long road for the young actress, Illiza Zappa-Finta had the strength to conquer her strugglesand, in the end, conquer her depression.

“If there’s any advice that I have for those out there struggling with mental health, just know...it’s not impossible to be happy. It may take a long time, but you can be. Life can be good. It’s not a fairytale- it’s true, and it’s the greatest truth that I have ever known.”

8

Clothes For Summer For the lazy & anxious Beach day coming up?

Wearing shorts over your bathing suit makes for a cute pre-beach outfit.

Many students and teens’ high-maitenance life styles mean that they don’t have the capability to grow out long nails.

If you still want the glitz and glamour of pretty nails but the durability for everyday work, acrylic nailseven short acrylics!- are a way to go.

Matte lips are out! Gloss is the new thing- and this summer, they’re the newest comfy trend.

Close-toed shoes are too much for the heat- opting for some strappy sandals is stylish and practical.

Unibrow getting you down?

Triangle-shaped hair making it hard to get up in the morning?

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10

QUIZ: What style suits your personality?

Question 1: Where would you prefer to go on the weekend?

1. a coffee date with the girls 2. the club 3. to the recording studio to add some tracks to your mixtape

Question 3: Are you often 1. cold in the arms 2. cold in the legs 3. cold everywhere Question 5: do you prefer 1. staying frugal 2. splurging 3. buying all of your things pre-owned

Question 2: If you had to give up one sense, would it be: 1. Taste 2. Smell 3. Sight

Question 4: how often do you have migraines?

1. all the time 2. i take too much tylenol to know 3. never, i drink fit tea Question 6: what’s your favorite tertiary color?

1. chartreuse 2. magenta 3. vermillion

Final question: cats or dogs?

1. cats 2. dogs 3. i prefer not to get involved with such a divisive and volatile issue

11 If you mostly got 1...

you are

Happy

If you mostly got 2...

you are

Flappy

If you mostly got 3...

you are

Sappy

If you got happy, then congratulationsIf you got sappy, then life, for you, you fit best with the look of a stylish If you got flappy, then it’s likely that you is multi-dimensional- clothing is librarian. Happy can often be seen live life for the moment. You try your best just a small part of your image. wearing quite put-together clothes, like not to seem uptight or too put together, You can often be found at the gym blouses, skirts, and high-heeled shoes. because you don’t want to stress people doing yoga or drinking herbal Happy likes to live their life very neatout. You tend to go for more comfortable tea on the side of the road. Your ly, and enjoys always being on their clothes with a slight stylish edge- blue clothes often reflect your carefree feet, working every day to make their jeans, t-shirts, sandals- even if you’re spirit and desire to be comfortable life better- and they want their clothes wearing pajamas, there’s something in your own skin- so if you want to represent that. quirky and fun about your clothes, with- to wear sweatpants to a business out being too complicated. meeting, you will, and no one can stop you.