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Hollywood drama distracts us from reality
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As a teenage girl living on the outskirts of L.A., I have always had a front row seat to the shimmering bubble of Hollywood. Universal Studios was my go-to summer amusement park and I grew up in awe of the art of film and movie sets. Behind the scenes glimpses of my favorite childhood…
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The weight of tomorrow is heavy today
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I have spent my entire life waiting to go to college, a place where I will have more freedom than ever before. As a junior, I have about a year left to decide where I want to apply. I never understood how someone was able to narrow 6,000 colleges to only 10, from 50…
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Generation Alpha is unwilling to read
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When I think back to my childhood, some of my fondest memories involve reading. Whether I remember calm afternoons spent at the Barnes and Noble café or going to “Read to a Dog” events at the library with my mom, I can recall the immense joy I felt over all things reading and writing.…
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Distance makes the heart grow fonder
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Since my closest friend moved away, I finally understand what the phrase “distance makes the heart grow fonder” truly means. This past June, my best friend, Eloise Etheridge, moved from California to Berlin, Germany. I met Eloise in middle school at a mutual friend’s birthday party, and we have been inseparable ever since. Honestly,…
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Celebrities do not owe anything to their fans
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Ever since the rise of music artists, there have been many cases of harassing, stalking, entitled and incessant superfans. Celebrities constantly speak up about these creepy fans, asking them to stop this inappropriate behavior. But fans ignore the asks of these artists, claiming that they should not be criticized, as they are the reason…
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Meta pays lobbyists for a possible TikTok ban
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It seems that every time a new “it-girl” app comes around, older generations and politicians become overly skeptical. Teenagers spend too much time on their phones, their attention spans are getting shorter, and you need to care about this. But the truth is, everyone has a much higher screen time than they should. Since…
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My mom is my high school English teacher
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One person in particular comes to mind above all others when I think back on my educational journey: my mother. She is not just any teacher, she is my English teacher, and it is in her classroom that I have seen her develop into the teacher that she is today. Sitting in the corner…
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I feel my imagination getting weaker
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I look at the journals I used to write endless stories in, untouched. I see the stuffed animals whose personalities I know so well, but haven’t come out in so long. The corner of my room that used to be a stage for my one-woman musicals is now just the corner of my room.…
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Focus on the news you consume, it might be controlled by Russia
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With the abundance of influencers, podcasters and free-thinkers that live and breathe X, formerly Twitter , I have noticed the amount of news coverage we see has increased. In a social media landscape that turns views into money, my generation is being targeted and exploited for our attention. If it bleeds, it leads, no…
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What would make little you happy?
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If someone was to peer into the life of 3rd grade Ava, they would see a little girl, sprinting her way upstairs the second she got home from school to bask away for hours doing arts and crafts. From her melted bead business to her hot glued popsicle stick house she made with her…