I don’t like to run, yet this past year I ran about 200-300 miles. Why? I’m actually still trying to figure that out. My whole life, I’ve been bad at sports, and cross country is no exception. I am consistently the slowest or second slowest girl on the team, never finishing races before 26 minutes. However, this is not why I hate to run. My perpetual slowness is actually one of my favorite parts of running. I never feel pressure to perform well for the benefit of the team. My race does not affect whether or not we make it to states. I only feel personal pressure, which can suck, but it can also take form in personal goals and growth.
Some of my best friends are also on the team. However this is not why I hate running. The slower people of the team have a bond, I cannot describe. We are all connected in our statistical failure. I like to think the fast people on the team aren’t as bonded as us, but alas, they probably are bonding over the plethora of victories they have, and how it feels to fly through a race in under 20 minutes.
This longing for speed is what makes me hate running. I feel myself dreading workouts because I know mine will take longer, purely because I go through it slower. I dread race days. My race will take 5-10 minutes of more pain than our average team finishing time. I dread talking about running, my “great race” of 27 minutes, which would absolutely destroy a varsity member if they had performed the same way. And although I know we are different runners, my stats, seen as bad in another runner’s eyes, will always make me feel worse than.
The first sentence of this blog was a partial lie. I love to run, but I hate it too. When I’m out of high school I will remember the friends I made, the runner’s highs I had, the amazing shape I was in, and my toned calves. I won’t remember the dread I felt in all the moments of self doubt, so maybe, just maybe, I will try to focus on it less now too.

If you’ve known me at all this past year, you’ve heard me groan about men in STEM classes.

If you’ve met me, you’ve heard my loud angry rants about being a womxn in my field.

If you’re my friend, you’ve probably seen me question my entire career, the one I’ve been so sure in my entire life, because of the discrimination in my subject.

As I go on more and more field trips, I found that the women on these trips are the ones who make me feel like my career choice is possible. That I could go into science, and achieve my goals- without sacrificing my happiness.  I find these women on work floors now, but growing up, I found those women in the books my mother gave me.

Here’s my list of five of the women who made me feel a little less alone.

Amelia Earhart – the first female aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. My absolute idol- as in, deep obsession. I had an Amelia Earhart action figure, and an entire birthday at the Air and Space Museum. I am completely, totally, obsessed with her.

Mae Jemison – She was the first black woman to travel into space. I loved her story- especially the fact that she was an engineer, a physician, and an astronaut. Her pages in my history books were ones frequently flipped to.

Margaret Hamilton – A software engineer who worked on NASA’s Apollo program. One of the things I love the most about Margaret Hamilton is the iconic photo of her standing proudly against a stack of handwritten code the same height as her, all done by her! She was also awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Katherine Johnson – Also a NASA employee who worked as a mathematician. Most of us have probably seen the iconic film Hidden Figures, and I absolutely adore this movie. What I love about Katherine Johnson in particular is how much she genuinely enjoyed her work and mathematics.

Ada Lovelace – She was the first computer programmer. A name frequently forgotten, Ada Lovelace has been an inspiration for me for years. Though she was the daughter of a famous poet she instead found love for computer science.

I thank my mother constantly for the stacks of books, the many stories, science kits, and summer camps she provided me with. Without these stories, I wouldn’t have the courage to create new ones.

 

In honor of Native American Heritage Month, here are some of my favorite books/songs/television/etc. by Native Artists.

The first thing I will mention is obviously the iconic TV show: Reservation Dogs. This TV show has a fully Indigenous cast and crew and is relatable to Indigenous people around the world. However, you don’t have to be Native to enjoy the show. While you may not get every cultural reference, you don’t need to in order to enjoy this comedy series. Just try watching the trailer (it does contain swear words – sorry), and then I promise you’ll be hooked. 

Now, in contrast to a show that takes place on the reservation, I want to choose a book that represents more Native experiences. When we think about Native Americans, we often think about them living on reservations. However, that is only one experience that Native people have. The book There There by Tommy Orange has multiple narrators, each with varying levels of connection to their Native community. This book is one of the most influential books I’ve read because it made me, as someone who doesn’t live on a reservation, feel less isolated from the Native community. At the end of the book, all the plot lines connect at a single event, a powwow.

Note regarding a powwow: a powwow is not a meeting. No matter how many times someone refers to a meeting as a “powwow,” the two are not the same.

 

Okay, so we have arrived at songs. My first song suggestion is going to be a serious one (or not as comedic as the following songs). One song I absolutely love is “Build a Bridge” by Nahko and Medicine for the People. This song beautifully describes the struggle of being Native but growing up in a different culture. It describes building a bridge between the two communities, the culture where he was raised, and his Indigenous culture. Quite the opposite of this song is the song “Rain Dance” by Lil Mike and Funny Bone. They performed this song on AGT, and it got them through to the next round. This song is just fun and a good time. They have many other songs; my other favorite is “Frybread Snackin’.” Frybread is also my favorite Navajo food, and I am so excited for whenever I go to New Mexico next, and can eat it again.

The last and most important way to honor Native American heritage month is to learn about Indigenous culture and its erasure. Learning and teaching others about Native American history is the most impactful way to support Native Americans. It is essential to also uplift Native voices as they fight for change and equality. 

In 1665, Johannes Vermeer put brush to canvas and created his arguably most famous painting: Girl with a Pearl Earring. This painting shows a young Dutch girl with, as the title suggests, a pearl earring. I love this painting; the soft glance the young girl throws is so gentle and realistic.

This year, I had the chance to dress up as an art piece or an artist for my portfolio class on Halloween. After sifting through some favorite famous pieces, I settled upon the Girl with a Pearl Earring. I decided this would be the most recognizable piece I could recreate.

How did I create the costume? I knew I needed fabric, so my first step was to take a trip to Michael’s to see what they could offer. I found two t-shirts: one blue and one a light shade of mustard yellow. The colors weren’t perfect, but they were the closest I could find. Next were the earrings, the most important part of the entire piece. I was originally planning on taking a pair of Styrofoam balls and painting them with metallic paint, but whilst strolling up and down the aisles in Michael’s I stumbled upon their Christmas decor. In the Christmas section I found just what I needed: small white ornaments. The ornaments were perfect, because I only had to slide them onto a pair of hoop earrings to wear them! The last thing I needed was an outfit. This was the most difficult part. I eventually decided upon a tan jacket that I found in my sister’s closet. With the acquisition of the last element, I was ready to begin assembling my costume.

I must’ve spent an hour this past weekend trying to wrap t-shirts around my head in different ways. I eventually found it easiest to secure the yellow t-shirt around my ponytail and then layer a strip of the blue t-shirt on top. It wasn’t perfect, but in my opinion it was pretty close. I clasped on the “pearl” earrings, threw on the tan jacket, and I was ready to go!

Believe it or not, this is probably one of the easiest Halloween costumes I’ve ever done. It may not be my favorite, but it was fun to recreate!

The Onaway First Floor Girls´s Bathroom: This bathroom is one of the most horrifying places in Shaker. It´s not because of the strange stains, or the four-foot-high doors. No, there is a ghost in there. Or a really strange elementary-schooler. One of the two. I was in there one day, washing my hands and minding my own business, when a very short person waddled up to me. ¨Have you ever been upside down?¨ she eerily asked. 

¨Yeah, a few times.¨ I shrugged. Monkey bars, roller-coasters, unfortunate falls, yeah, of course I had been upside down before. 

¨Do you know what happens when you´re upside down?¨ The girl took a step toward me. 

¨No, what?¨ I humored her, expecting some sweet, child-like response, like you start to fly or your hands turn into feet. Something like that. 

¨Your head shrinks into your neck. Your neck shrinks into your shoulders. Your shoulder shrink into your stomach. Your stomach shrinks into your legs…¨ and so on, and so on. I hightailed it out of there. No first-grader I had ever met had introduced themselves by explaining how my body will collapse in on itself if I am turned upside down, resulting in unavoidable death. That was a ghost. I know it. 

Silje Jensen´s Backyard: My friend Silje always had stepping stones that spanned the grass of her backyard, between the trampoline and the soccer goal. Turns out, they were not stepping stones. They were gravestones. I am dead serious (pun intended). Silje learned this while she and her family were excavating the stones to create a larger backyard space. They were gravestones of the original Shakers from the 1800s. The Shaker Historical Society concluded that the stones had been dropped in her backyard while they were being moved between cemeteries in Shaker. That I cannot wrap my head around. The cart of stones was too heavy, so they just tossed a few off on a random plot of land. The disrespect! Those Shakers must be lingering around. I sure wouldn’t be resting easily if I knew someone had tossed my gravestone away like chopped liver. 

Those random little houses by the RTA Tracks: What are they for?! Someone has told me they are offices, but I have never seen anyone enter or leave. There is no parking. It doesn’t seem like there would be enough space for offices in there, either. The lights are never on. For some reason, these little houses have always been fascinating to me. Their interiors are hidden by dusty windowpanes and curtains. The glass windows are cracked and dirty. What are they for?! Rafael says that cities all over the world hide things in houses that they don´t want their people to see. I think it is ghosts that they don´t want us to see. Maybe the ghosts of mayors past? Or RTA conductors past? 

 

Well, somehow November is here. Fall sports are done, Halloween is over, the Early Decision college application deadline is past, and we have arrived in the final two months of 2022. Every year, we hear the same huge debate over the appropriate time to hang up holiday decorations. “Wait until after Thanksgiving!” and  “I would never hang up decorations before December 1st” are some of the phrases heard over and over again. But through my life, my opinion has remained the same.

November 1st is the appropriate date for the holiday decorations to come out of their seasonal retirement. 

My family celebrates both Christmas and Hanukkah, so the holiday season is bound to be my favorite time of the year. Honestly, I love the holidays with all of my heart. The trees, the lights, the music, the cookies, the food. It’s almost as if this season should last forever! So why just mush it down into less than a month? When you’re waiting until December 1st or the day after Thanksgiving to put up holiday decorations, you only get about a month to bask in the glory and the joy that these decorations bring.

Starting yesterday (Tuesday, November 1) my morning car rides to school are filled with Mariah Carey, Michael Buble, and Ariana Grande Christmas hits, and the minute I got home from school was the minute I pulled out my box of decorations for my bedroom to hang up. However, I am the only person in my family who agrees with this. Until Thanksgiving passes, my holiday spirit is forced to be contained in the four walls of my bedroom, not the rest of our house. 

As much as I love Halloween (don’t even get me started on how much I love Halloween!), I wake up the next morning ready to rip down all of those decorations and replace them with holiday cheer! Don’t get me wrong, I understand why people would choose to wait until after Thanksgiving to put up their holiday decorations, but the idea of containing all of the love and cheer that the holiday season brings into just one month makes me sad! So for the rest of my life, I will keep hanging up holiday decorations at 12:01 a.m. on November 1st and will not let anyone else’s preferences get in the way of my holiday spirit 🙂

It’s November, which means that the holidays are officially here. Before we know it, January will be knocking down our doors and bringing the post-holiday depression along with it. So, for the next two months, I will be doing as many holiday and wintery activities as I can. I’ve compiled a short list of my favorite activities around Cleveland that are sure to spread holiday cheer.

1. Twinkle in the 216

The Cleveland Botanical Garden’s annual winter show opens November 19th and runs through the end of the year. The show will “celebrate the historic character of Cleveland’s neighborhoods as they are all aglow for the holiday season,” according to the Garden’s website. While winter plants like poinsettias and evergreen trees will be featured, the classic butterfly glasshouses will still be open (with some added holiday decor). This event is super fun for all ages; I started going with my family in elementary school, and I still look forward to it every year. Look out for the collection of gingerbread houses decorated by local artists! https://holdenfg.org/events/cleveland-botanical-garden/a-garden-holiday/

2. Public Square Outdoor Ice Rink

Okay, maybe I’m biased because I’m a skater, but I think that ice skating (outdoors) is one of the best winter activities. Public Square’s ice rink will open on Nov. 25 and be open all winter long! Once you have a ticket, you can skate for as long as you want. I love going at night and skating under the holiday lights. If you don’t have your own skates, rental is free with your admission! 

https://www.clevelandpublicsquare.com/cleveland-foundation-skating-rink

3. Strongsville Toboggan Chutes

Do you miss Cedar Point during the winter? Fear not, because I have the perfect activity for you. Cleveland Metroparks’ Strongsville Toboggan Chutes is the perfect place for winter thrill seekers who want to go down a 700 foot steep ice slide. Once you have your ticket, you can toboggan all day! According to the website, the chutes will open in November, although a date is not specified.

https://www.clevelandmetroparks.com/parks/visit/activities/activity-types/tobogganing

4. WinterLand

There’s nothing that screams “holiday” like a giant Christmas tree. Clevelanders are in luck because Public Square features one every year! WinterLand, the annual tree-lighting event, will be held Nov. 26. Enjoy hot chocolate, skating, and perhaps some Christmas carols among the holiday light display. This is truly the perfect kickoff to the Christmas holiday season, taking place right after Thanksgiving and Black Friday. 

https://winterlandcle.com/

5. Meet Mall Santa

I couldn’t make a list without including this. Please, go meet mall Santa. He is waiting for you. If you’re going to be at the mall shopping for Christmas gifts anyway, what’s the harm in telling Santa what YOU want? I promise you won’t regret it. 

Whatever you do to celebrate, I hope you have a fun and meaningful holiday with your family and friends!

 

I love Halloween because I love winning. And I always win Halloween.

Growing up, it used to confuse people that Halloween was my favorite holiday. You don’t get presents. It isn’t family-centered. There’s no special meal. It doesn’t even come with a day off from school. But none of these matters to me because Halloween is a day to be whatever you want, and being what I want is what I do better than anyone else.

When I was younger, I wanted to be Michael Jackson. I watched his music videos on the television in my basement all day when I was five and six. Since Halloween is the day to be whatever you want, I saw it as my perfect opportunity to become my idol — and I refused to hold back with my costume. At the start of every October of elementary school, my favorite ritual was scrolling through the Party City website on my mom’s laptop to find the perfect costume. In kindergarten, when I discovered a copy of Michael’s shiny black jacket with rows of gold on the front (you know the one), I knew I had found the one. I also got matching shiny pants, a hat, dark sunglasses, and –of course– a single white glove.

The first event I won that day was Fernway Elementary’s costume competition. Technically, it was just a Halloween parade and not a competition, but I had the best costume. So in my mind, it was a competition, and I won. My costume crushed all the lame pumpkins, Tinkerbells, ninjas, and little mermaids and moonwalked over their shame. I could have gone even further and worn the hyper-realistic Jackson mask my dad bought for me. But we were banned from covering our face at school for whatever reason (how times have changed!). This was all right with me, though, because the inside of the mask smelled like old macaroni. It was also terrifying, as you could expect. My dad used to sneak into my older sister’s room wearing the mask and yell unexpectedly. This traumatized her, and she became too frightened to use her shower because she feared Michael Jackson would be hiding in there.

The second competition was at the Cleveland Skating Club’s annual Halloween party. My amazing costume made me the center of attention, which proved I was the winner — even though, once again, it was not an official contest. My third triumph that 31st was at the dance competition in the club’s ballroom. This one was an official contest, so official that the winner was to receive a prize. Of course, I had to win this competition. The floor was waxed and shiny, perfect to strike a move on. When familiar eerie music began that preceded five iconic synth notes, I knew it was my time: Thriller was playing. I moved my feet across the floor; my legs moved at a Usain Bolt pace as people cheered for me. Once again, I had won. But this time it was official. In the proudest moment of my life, the DJ announced me as the winner of the dance competition, and I got to choose a prize as my trophy. I immediately picked the plastic, green mosquito replica. It was the size of my thumb, but it was the coolest thing I had ever seen.

This was in 2010, and I was only five years old. But it is relevant this year because I dressed as Michael Jackson again. As a senior, it was a full-circle moment to dress as Jackson for both my first and last Halloween as a student at Shaker.