Quarantine THoughts
A work of fiction.
By: Madi Pond | staff writer
Nowadays it seems that it would be easier to say I’ve been living in a toxic wasteland, but unfortunately, that isn’t even correct. But the never-ending feeling of doom is certainly there. You know, I never thought that my senior year would end like this. Sitting, holed up in my room, the television burning with updates about how many are dead, and the cracks in my walls are now seeming to form faces with upside-down smiles. I think this is what it’s like to turn mad. I’ve read about it in books, maybe even the newspaper at some moments. But I never thought those words would leak into my brain. My name is Kai McLancey, I’m 17 years young, unfortunately. And the world seems to be ending.
It’s funny how I can look out my window and actually see people outside for once. For so long everyone was so busy doing everything they had to do. Like my next-door neighbor, who started to mow his lawn at 4 in the morning. It’s really annoying, and I know his wife hates it too because I can hear them arguing on their back porch, again at 4 in the morning. I don’t know why he’s decided to mow his lawn. Maybe he’s gone insane watching the news, and the thoughts in his brain are too loud for him to sleep correctly. I can relate to him, sometimes I’ll be awake listening to him mow the lawn, and I'll start humming along to the motor.
My routine has been thrown away, sleeping at 6 am and waking up at 5 pm. God only knows how I’ll be able to get that fixed. My thoughts are intrusive, and my dreams won’t stop from turning into nightmares. I’ve been having to go to the store for my aunt. I’m young, and won’t die from the virus. Sometimes I go on walks at 3 AM just to get outside, but don’t wanna deal with talking to people as I leave my house. It’s not that I think I’m better than anyone else or anything, I am just getting to the point where I prefer to not talk to anyone.
In my personal, and I guess even professional opinion I’d say Donald Trump is a dumb-a** who doesn’t know anything about humans and their relationship with disinfectants. He essentially told us we should just be injected with bleach. I heard that someone in my state did it, he said: “it was his right as an American to go back to work!” What an idiot. Apparently, his skin started bubbling up, and he started throwing up blood. What a way to go out, right? If you even consider doing that, I very much recommend it, since your brain may be too small to calculate the difference between right or wrong.
This quarantine has been very hard. I started painting again. There’s something so soothing about using my fingers to create something beautiful. You can create so many things on just a white sheet and I think it’s something magical to be able to create these portraits. A sloppy mess of colorful pigments dance along the white canvas. Creativity is something that has been helping me a lot. Looking up at my ceiling and deciding that ONLY the left corner of my room should be painted yellow. I guess I’m lucky to be able to breathe for one but to also be healthy enough to paint. It’s a crazy world we live in, and I’m glad I just get to sit at home and paint and hum and have opinions. I’m glad I’m alive.
It’s funny how I can look out my window and actually see people outside for once. For so long everyone was so busy doing everything they had to do. Like my next-door neighbor, who started to mow his lawn at 4 in the morning. It’s really annoying, and I know his wife hates it too because I can hear them arguing on their back porch, again at 4 in the morning. I don’t know why he’s decided to mow his lawn. Maybe he’s gone insane watching the news, and the thoughts in his brain are too loud for him to sleep correctly. I can relate to him, sometimes I’ll be awake listening to him mow the lawn, and I'll start humming along to the motor.
My routine has been thrown away, sleeping at 6 am and waking up at 5 pm. God only knows how I’ll be able to get that fixed. My thoughts are intrusive, and my dreams won’t stop from turning into nightmares. I’ve been having to go to the store for my aunt. I’m young, and won’t die from the virus. Sometimes I go on walks at 3 AM just to get outside, but don’t wanna deal with talking to people as I leave my house. It’s not that I think I’m better than anyone else or anything, I am just getting to the point where I prefer to not talk to anyone.
In my personal, and I guess even professional opinion I’d say Donald Trump is a dumb-a** who doesn’t know anything about humans and their relationship with disinfectants. He essentially told us we should just be injected with bleach. I heard that someone in my state did it, he said: “it was his right as an American to go back to work!” What an idiot. Apparently, his skin started bubbling up, and he started throwing up blood. What a way to go out, right? If you even consider doing that, I very much recommend it, since your brain may be too small to calculate the difference between right or wrong.
This quarantine has been very hard. I started painting again. There’s something so soothing about using my fingers to create something beautiful. You can create so many things on just a white sheet and I think it’s something magical to be able to create these portraits. A sloppy mess of colorful pigments dance along the white canvas. Creativity is something that has been helping me a lot. Looking up at my ceiling and deciding that ONLY the left corner of my room should be painted yellow. I guess I’m lucky to be able to breathe for one but to also be healthy enough to paint. It’s a crazy world we live in, and I’m glad I just get to sit at home and paint and hum and have opinions. I’m glad I’m alive.
Published on May 2nd, 2020
Just Quarantine Things
For everyone whose bored in a house and in a house bored.
By: Emily Rhodes | chief editor
Many of us have probably already figured this out by now, but being stuck in quarantine isn’t all that fun. You’ve probably already memorized each flaw on your bedroom ceiling and know the exact amount of steps it takes for you to walk through every single room in your house. I am here to hopefully give you some ideas of what to do with your time while being house-ridden.
Learn a new language:
There are multiple ways to go about learning a language. For starters, you can download language learning apps, like Duolingo for example. Another way is to find foreign films in the language of your choice and then watch them with English subtitles. After you get pretty comfortable with the English subtitles you can then move on to watching the film with the subtitles in the same language. The final step would be watching the film without any subtitles at all. Youtube is also a great way to learn a new language and it’s also free. There are many accounts dedicated to teaching you foreign languages.
Start cooking and/or baking:
If you’ve always wanted to try and learn your way around the kitchen but never had the time to do it, this is your moment to shine. There are recipes all over the internet just waiting to be cooked. Pinterest is a good place to go if you don’t know what you want to make until you see it. Again, Youtube is another great place to go if you like having a video to go off of or just need some visual support now and then to make sure you are still on the right track to deliciousness. If neither of those work for you, just remember Google is your friend and you are bound to find a recipe on there that just calls out to your stomach. Another way you can get started is simply by asking a parent or guardian for any recipes they have or if you can just help them cook and learn as you go.
Get crafty:
Art can be a magical thing. It can help you express how you feel, how you see things or put something in an entirely new perspective. During this time getting into art or creating things can be a therapeutic process. You can google images to start with or even search up tutorials on Youtube. If you’re more into the hands-on physical type of art, try gathering things from around the house and see what you can make out of it. Maybe you have a bunch of old and worn-out clothes, now you can dabble in the art of DIY fashion. And hey, if it doesn’t turn out good, we’re all stuck in quarantine so no one will see it… unless you post about it of course.
Make up a dance:
This might be especially useful if you are stuck in a house with a bunch of siblings. Coming up with a dance for all of you is a great way for them to get their energy out while hopefully keeping the peace for a little bit. According to quora.com, there are at least 97 MILLION songs right now in the world (and counting) which means that there are plenty of options to choose from to make a very entertaining dance.
Exercise:
Okay so this one is pretty obvious and self-explanatory but I figured I’d still mention it. There are a bunch of apps in the app store that you can download and enter specific goals you want and it will create a work out for you so you can achieve them. If that is too much commitment though, there are, once again, many videos on Youtube that you can follow along with. You could also just google “workouts” and plenty of sites and pictures will pop up.
I hope that reading this has given you an idea of what to do if you find yourself staring into the deep, dark abyss of boredom. Even if none of the things that are listed appeal to you, maybe it has given you an idea of something else to do. Stay home and stay safe. Have a great day.
Published on April 22nd, 2020
2020 Guide to Slang
Here is a road map to help navigate the lingo of present day teens.
By: Anna Wrigley and Allison Schuring | staff writer
No Cap- to “cap” is to lie, “no cap” means you aren't lying, or what you are saying is true.
Example: “Bro like no cap that girl is fine. “
Trippin- when someone is overreacting or freaking out for no reason
Example- “You’re trippin. Everything is gonna be okay. “
Crib- Home; your place of residence
Example- “Come hang out at my crib after school today. “
Homie- close friends; people you can count on
Example: “I know that my homies will always have my back.”
Shorty- affectionate term for an attractive female
Example- “Hey shorty can I get your digits?”
Fosho- “For sure”
Example- Zach- “I’ll be at your house in ten minutes”
Ryan- “Fosho”
Fire- when something is really good
Example: “That food you made yesterday was fire!”
Tea- gossip; drama; important news
Example- “I’ve got tea to tell you later.”
Skirt- to leave someplace quickly
Example- “We better skirt I have to be home at eleven”
Bet- to agree to do something
Example- Jackson “We should go see a movie later”
Emma- “Bet”
Shade- acting in a disrespectful manner toward someone
Example- “My ex was totally throwing shade at me today.”
Flex- to show something off
Example- “Did you see that kid flexing his Gucci belt today?”
Lit- when something is turned up or fun
Example- “That party last night was so lit!”
Lowkey/Highkey- lowkey means to keep something on the low, highkey means the opposite.
Example- “I lowkey have a crush on (so and so).”
Dope- when something is really cool
Example- “Her house is so dope. You've gotta see it sometime.”
Link- to meet up or hangout
Example- “Are you tryna link up later?”
Ghost- to ignore/ stop talking to someone.
Example- “Lindsey ghosted me after we hung out. “
Mood- when you relate to something.
Example- Kara- “I am always so tired.”
Mark- “Mood”
Whip- car / vehicle
Example- “Dude can we take your whip out tonight?”
Sus- when something is suspicious
Example- “That quiet kid has been acting pretty sus today.”
Example: “Bro like no cap that girl is fine. “
Trippin- when someone is overreacting or freaking out for no reason
Example- “You’re trippin. Everything is gonna be okay. “
Crib- Home; your place of residence
Example- “Come hang out at my crib after school today. “
Homie- close friends; people you can count on
Example: “I know that my homies will always have my back.”
Shorty- affectionate term for an attractive female
Example- “Hey shorty can I get your digits?”
Fosho- “For sure”
Example- Zach- “I’ll be at your house in ten minutes”
Ryan- “Fosho”
Fire- when something is really good
Example: “That food you made yesterday was fire!”
Tea- gossip; drama; important news
Example- “I’ve got tea to tell you later.”
Skirt- to leave someplace quickly
Example- “We better skirt I have to be home at eleven”
Bet- to agree to do something
Example- Jackson “We should go see a movie later”
Emma- “Bet”
Shade- acting in a disrespectful manner toward someone
Example- “My ex was totally throwing shade at me today.”
Flex- to show something off
Example- “Did you see that kid flexing his Gucci belt today?”
Lit- when something is turned up or fun
Example- “That party last night was so lit!”
Lowkey/Highkey- lowkey means to keep something on the low, highkey means the opposite.
Example- “I lowkey have a crush on (so and so).”
Dope- when something is really cool
Example- “Her house is so dope. You've gotta see it sometime.”
Link- to meet up or hangout
Example- “Are you tryna link up later?”
Ghost- to ignore/ stop talking to someone.
Example- “Lindsey ghosted me after we hung out. “
Mood- when you relate to something.
Example- Kara- “I am always so tired.”
Mark- “Mood”
Whip- car / vehicle
Example- “Dude can we take your whip out tonight?”
Sus- when something is suspicious
Example- “That quiet kid has been acting pretty sus today.”
Published on April 21st, 2020
