By Rainier Lin (’25)
04/14/2025
Again. It happened again. My dear darling Grey slammed the door open right as I was dividing the roles for the upcoming Pride Week.
I yelled, “I WANT YOU TO BE IN THE VIDEO TOO!” In exchange for his voice, a terrible request left his lips, “WRITE AN ARTICLE!” I screamed back, “DEAL!” And then he left just as quickly as he had entered.
Folks. . . this is how regrets are made.
What have I done?
04/15/2025
Well, what choice do I have?
Here we go.
04/07/2025
No workshops, no guests, no Arts Week yet. But, the energy of it was well boosted up when Ms. Harms came into the Grade 12-isolated room and stared daggers at every one of us.
John and I just had our Measure for Measure unit test, so there was barely a brain up there. It was fine, we only needed to remember two things.
REMEMBER ME!
- Draw YML in a tutu.
- DRAW YML IN A TUTU!
After school, the Magic School Bus Team practiced their scene while the blood donors were playing Smash Bros. It was hard to not get distracted, but we eventually got our opening choreo done. That was enough. Hopefully.
04/08/2025
John was not here, he just got his wisdom tooth pulled. Lucy was not here, she was sick. It was alright, I was there, and here were the wonderful things I saw:
A table:
- Of magazines ready for nimble hands to punch perfect circles from its pages
- With a package of papercut flowers prepared for the audience’s piece of advice
- Of “A” and “B” mixtures for special effects makeup –everyone sported some sort of dangerous injury
- Of little references of animals patiently waiting to be painted and admired.
- Of cedar strips soaked in tubs of water, softened for bracelet making or rose making
- With neatly placed blocks of clay in ascending order, rectangle until kneaded and molded into every imaginable though
- Of cookies, blank slates for the icing and the sprinkles, and the hunger-induced creativity
- With mismatched markers, thin plastic sheets, and a pile of keychains -unlooped, but you can shrink the dinks back home
- Filled with plates of soulless Clay-Peliters
- Stacked with little pots of plants splattered with an assortment of bright colours
- Of four empty canvases awaiting the brushes of the destructive House Captains
Then of course, at the center of the stage above the rest of the crowd, our musician. Happy as she was, turning our smiles up with her own amusement and happy tunes.
In the end, there were plenty of people willing to draw the beautiful YML. It wasn’t a worry.
04/09/2025
For the sake of Subway and sleep, John lied. Ms. Harms was unimpressed, so she warned to tell him a horrible story of wisdom teeth for the inevitable time for when he would need it taken out.
—
Jazz, Jazz, Jazz. Ya’ like jazz? I like jazz. We had some amazing jazz.
—
Coffee house.
How do we begin?
4:00pm
I arrived home, gathered my costume, ate a few bites, then left for the school.
5:30pm
I broke into Lu’s Lab and printed out my props. The printer was struggling with my 20+ pages, but it worked eventually.
6:00pm
The Magic School Bus Team proceeded to traumatize the folks who unfortunately saw the rehearsal in the dining hall.
6:30pm
I broke off from the team to memorize my piece. Yes, it was not memorized. And no, I didn’t manage to get in my head before the stage was at my feet.
7:00pm
We sat and watched –maybe even performed. It was a long time. So to shorten it, here’s a line per scene.
Moses and Zander, reunited at last, finally, Mr. Elmer can have a blast
(Open mic was a scare, but look at them, back and there)
Manuela, sick again, but when has the sickness ever stopped the wren
(A butterfly is difficult to catch, especially with such experience attached)
Amos, powerful despite the youth in age, Ms. McAllister and I talked offstage
(You’ve got a good one for the coming year, I know I know, they’re all dear)
Rose, a jack of all trades with the voice and the piano raids
(To bring the two together, it sure push you to be the better)
Ashley, aren’t you busy, letting the council steal all your creativity
(Hard it is to play in jazz, but to speak and dance, oh that’s pizzazz)
Jono, at the stands and at the screens, you’ve had your boys causing scenes
(Your email in “Necessary Equipment”, it’s fine, “Guitar sing” is commitment)
Adrian, you’ve knocked the wood, dragged the hairs, and stunned us good
(Never a bore when we have you front and center, by the conductor’s floor)
Daisy, you’ve graduated from the keys to your more expressive singing sprees
(With a knack for strong displays, remember to give your jaw some rest days)
Owen, stealing the limelight with the saddest song any man might
(Dancing by ear, it seemed like you too, could’ve shed a tear)
Rita, stunning the way you are, there’s a charm to that acoustic guitar
(Come back again next year, I promise I’ll keep your front row view clear)
Rainer, Ranier, we never know, it’s always different when it’s show
(Next time, don’t let them know it’s improv, they’ve got no idea)
Nila, Anne, Preston, Mr. Chong, there wasn’t a single flaw nor visible wrong
(I should count the up-five you skipped, but what am I to change the script)
The interjected one, you had us all wondering “When???”
(September, they say, from us back there, a great essay)
Sihi and co, me, you, Amy, Chloe, Chloe, Maddie, Sabrina, Spencer, Nick, and (Manuela)
(Year and year, without a doubt, despite the challenges, you’re always here)
9:00pm
And that is what I call a night.
(Also thank you to Mr. Jackson for letting me travel around the stage to take pictures.)
(And, for those who didn’t come, Mr. Huygens did a skit. It was very very funny.)
04/10/2025
At this point in time (05/15/2025), I have forgotten what workshops there were. I can say what happened in mine, but I can’t remember all the names, so bear with me.
Sihi, and I arrived at the Drama room. Mr. Chong was already there and ready to be the actor he always desired to be. Due to the small amount of people, and Sihi’s lack of sleep and too much work, we decided to let her go. It was fine though, we did many fun things.
Spaghetti game:
- Pick an emotion or adjective and say it as your body takes on the spaghetti movement of said word
- (Ex. “SAD” *proceeds to crumple on the ground*)
Analyze a poem and perform it:
- Exactly as the name states
Machine:
- A person becomes the first part of the machine with a repeating action and noise
- The rest join in with their own movement and noise
And that is the whole workshop.
I believe when Charles and Alan came in to take pictures, I told everyone to become a helicopter. It was great.
Thanks, Mr. Chong, Preston, Lomi, and Aria for terrorizing my interpretation of Edgar Allan Poe.
04/11/2025
Final day. The orchestra, with a whole ton of missing players, gave us a look into their Spring Concert performance. I was there for both, and both I incredibly enjoyed.
—
The Arts Week Closing Assembly. I don’t think we ever had one like this before. An alumni improv group and Ms. Harms outwardly handing out chocolates! Yes, it was an amazing Arts Week. I took a couple photos I really enjoyed. I truly laughed at Preston and Theo’s hands. And despite whoever claims otherwise, I was the one that shouted the “Change/Choice” for the final kiss prompt. I was me. I know because it was complete silence and I have a photo.
—
How incredible all this is. Tech week, Arts Week, and coming up we’ve got Asian Heritage Week and Pride Week.