4Q35

I never had a thing for celebrities.  If you were a movie star, I always admired the screenwriters and directors.  If you were a musician, I liked your music more than I liked you.  If you were a Kardashian, well, that should be self explanatory.   Celebrities were always so foreign from what I wanted to do with my life.

Mickey Mantle makes $100k a year, how much does your dad make driving that bus?  Nobody cares.  Think Mickey Mantle pays your bills?

4Q34

Am I happy where I live?  That's a tough answer.  I could go and explain the whole thing, but Mr. Drago never reads these anyways, so what's the point.  If you read this one Mr. Drago, ask me where I'm going to college.  That should give you a pretty clear answer as to how happy I am here in Chapel Hill.

4Q33

I broke up with a girl because I told her I was living too far away, then I had a 'thing' with one of her friends afterwards.  The girl and I no longer speak to each other.  I guess I lied, but I try not to dwell on it.

4Q32

I have never been in a situation where me being there was detrimental at all.  I've helped people before and that was that.  Nothing horrible came of it.  I guess I can consider myself lucky that I have never made things worse than they already are, but  I think I am just good at the things I do.

4Q31

I put an accidental hole in my wall because I dropped a framed picture from the top of a flight of stairs.  My parents were not happy, to say the least.

4Q30

Never been to a concert before.  I've always wanted to go to a mosh and stage dive. One of these.

4Q29

I was in an earthquake once but it was very small, and would not make a good story at all.  The whole ground started shaking and even some pictures fell off the walls.  It was small, but I now realize how harmful and earthquake actually is.

4Q28

I do consider myself responsible because many people have told me so.  Suppose there was an instance where the middle school gave out an award for the person with the most integrity and responsibility, and suppose that I won two years in a row.  Just suppose it.

4Q27

The trip to New York City and Schenectady this spring was one of my favorites.  Mainly because I felt very independent while I was there.  In NYC, I pretty much had free reign as to what I wanted to do.  Then I toured my college in Schenectady, which was great.  Overall, it was an amazing trip and cant wait to go back North for university.

4Q26

Money can buy happiness.  Anyone who disagrees is foolish.  Lets say you but a huge waterpark for you to play in 24/7.  Is that not happiness?  There is no nobility in poverty.  Anyone who believes that money is something that does not constitute happiness has never had enough money to do so.  And they never will, with that attitude.

4Q25

I try to hide myself online at all times.  Everything is private.  It is not even that I like social media at all either, I hate it.  It's terrible what it does to the mind.  If there was an opporunity for me to live somewhere with no access to the internet, I would jump on it.  everything is so impersonal.  Letter writing is gone, newspapers are gone.  I hate it.

4Q24

At least in my case, the most difficult thing about being a teenager is that I have all of these grand and philosophical ideas that nobody seems to take seriously.  Also, when I do not agree with an authority figure, I am forced to submit to them because I am simply younger.  That's terrible.  If there is a teacher that I do not agree with or believe that they are wrong, why should I do things there way?

4Q23

My ideal house is the one that I live in now.  8 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms, three car garage, 4 acres of land.  I really have nothing to complain about.  I live a very privileged life, I drive a Lexus, and I really have no complaints.

4Q22

I had a fight with my next door neighbor (my eternal worst enemy) and called him many things that I cannot believe I even knew.  We fought, I broke his nose, I called his dad a few bad things and gave his dad the bird.  Not my proudest moment, but it did feel good.

4Q21

I do not think the school year is too long, it just feels so.  The structure of the school year started around the farming cycles, giving summers off to kids so they could help their parents harvest the crops.  I don't really think it needs to be any shorter.  Maybe just ending it at the end of May instead of going about 2 weeks into June.  Those two weeks feel so long.

4Q20

We would be ignorant to think that we are the only form of life that will ever or has ever lived in the entire course of the history of the galaxy.  Obviously there are beings out there that will hopefully one day make contact with us.  As for Mars, I do not think it harbors as much life as some of the other  planets or moons we know about, and part of me thinks we need to figure out our problems on Earth before we start looking at colonizing the red planet.

4Q19

My favorite store is H&M.  Even though they do have some shady ways of making their products, I still think they look good.  It's cheap too, which is due to the child labor they enforce.  I'm aware of how bad it is, but I cannot lie, I love the store.

4Q18

I took a class called Twentieth Century Classics once, and I really felt that the class was not handled as well as it could've been.  It was a small class, which I prefer because it allows the teacher to get a better interaction with the students.

4Q17

Originality is the vehicle for creativity.  No one book and be special without originality, or every book would be the same.  As a person, I think I have some originality.  I don't match my socks, I drive one of the most expensive cars in the lot, and I try to only eat meat on Tuesdays (no other time of the week).  I don't know about you, but I think those things separate myself from the rest of the people I am forced to see everyday.

4Q16

I never end up dealing with stress well, as I hope the rest of my peers feel the same way.  School is stressful.  Parental pressure is stressful.  College application was stressful.  All of these things happen during a crucial time in my own development, in both mental and creative respects.  Its just all super scresssssfuuuuulllllll

4Q15

My parents taught me my values.  I have not had a teacher that I have really connected with either, so they didn't teach me values.  I don't go to church and I am very actively non-religious, so I did not learn any 'values' there.  My parents are great, and they have taught me everything that I know.

4Q14

I wish that I my college tuition would be paid, my nose to never get stuffy again, and to have a job that gives me an opportunity to live somewhere that is not in America, unless it is in New York City.

4Q13

My ideal mom and dad are the ones I already have.  I'm not one of those people who hates their parents, I really do admire them as people.  They treat me like an adult, and they always have.  I've never really been in trouble, probably because they beat me so hard as a kid.  That was a joke.  But with every joke comes a little truth I suppose.

4Q12

The first, obviously.  How could anyone in this class say anything otherwise?  I'm just about to go to college.  Until I graduate and find a job, I feel the second act will start.  But then again, how can anyone ever know which act you are in until it has passed.  You have to be able to recognize a change in one act to another to understand which act you used to be in.

When I moved here a year ago, I was completely uprooted from my friends and people that I knew well.  I knew nobody here.  Absolutely nobody, and that made me cynical, I feel.  I realized that high school is one big sham honestly, that it is one of the least important times in your life.  People always tell me high school, or ever college for that matter, is the best time of your life.  How can you say that?  Your life must be terrible if high school was the best time of your life.  There is no reason why it should be.  None of it means anything compared to the time after you graduate college and get a job.  High school is just a doorway to college.  That's all.  Personally, and I know nobody will agree with me on this, but I think the social aspect of schooling is not as important as everyone thinks it is.  We like to think that everyone cares about everyone in high school, but nobody does.  Nobody cares, like A Bronx Tale.  You think I really care about trivial things now that everyone makes the biggest deal over?  Of course not.  Why should I care about where the party is or how drunk everyone was there.  In 2 months time, I won't even see you for 7 hours a day.  High school is just a stepping stone, a small ass pebble in the grand scheme of life.

People will say that high school is important, and it is as an academic standpoint, nothing else.  Take an average adult and ask them if they are still really good friends with anyone from high school.  I bet you the vast majority would say no.  You think i would be 'friends' with any of the people I see in a given day at this school?  I am 'friends' with you because there is no other option.  I am forced to be nice to you.  Some of you are so weird and freak me out that I don't even feel comfortable around you.  Some people are so gross that I shutter to think of a time when the wind casts their stench upon me.  Some of you are so terrible and mean that I am surprised anyone hangs out with them.  People need to think prolepticly while in high school.  They need to look forward towards college and really growing as an individual.

All this might send some red flags up, and you might think that I am "unstable."  I can assure you I am not.  I am just tired.  I'm just stressed.  I'm just ready to get out of the 'best time of my life.'

There you go, Mr. Drago, Here's something longer than two sentences.  Take from it what you will.

4Q11

I think it is tough for me to answer this question because I have not experienced true love.  I cannot say one way or another because I have not had the opportunity to be a part of something as special and intense as true love.

4Q10

How about a remake of Dead Poets Society, where a teacher takes a class of unmotivated students and turns them into artists.  That could've happened to me in real life but my teacher decided not to use the unlimited potential of the class to do so...oh well.  I could've had a real John Keating.  But anyways, the students are highly unmotivated except for one, who really enjoys the teacher.  They form a connection based upon their love of classic literature.  The teacher is constantly pushing the kid to create and thrive in his artistic endeavors, so much so that the kid has a mental breakdown and the teacher is fired.  I really love the movie Dead Poets Society, if it was not obvious already.

4Q9

What really grinds my gears?  When teachers don't know how to teach, when they demean their students, and when they make it clear who the like and do not like in the class. AND, when they think they are almost divine just because they are the teacher.  Teachers need to find a connection with the student, and I have teachers who do not.

4Q8

How could someone not value trust in a relationship?

4Q7

My favorite birthday is the one that happens every year...on July 2nd...every month of July...on the 2nd day of that month...every year.

4Q6

I will probably not get a job over the summer because I will be too busy breaking the world record for the most amount of time without sleep, which is 12 days.  Having a job will interfere with my awakeness, so therefore I cannot do it.  I will also try to find my own artistic aesthetic during the summer, so that will take up most of my time.

4Q5

Taking a risk involves trying something that is foreign or new to you, so obviously it would advance the story in such a way.  Because the character is trying something new, there is a new thing being incorporated into the story.  As far as conflict, risk often times results in victory, however, I do not entirely believe that this is a real world application.

4Q4

My favorite photo is a picture of Stanley Kubrick directing a movie.  It has him pointing at various cameras, and I really like how it encapsulates his directing style.  He is one of my main inspirations for the creative process, and I feel very personal with the photo.

4Q3

I do not like people telling me how I should create, in fact I find it very counterproductive towards my goals.  I am self-driven to complete and create art, and I do not need someone telling me how I should create MY art, because then it no longer feels like MY art.  A little bump in the right direction is not bad, and neither is a little criticism, but going past that is too far.  Let me figure it out of my own. Let me fail.  Let me make a fool of myself so that I will know what to do next time.

4Q2

Dialogue plays a huge role in the development of playwriting, as it is the main way the story is conveyed.  Unlike a novel or a short story, the play is driven by the dialogue with very few stage directions really.  Shakespearean plays are almost all dialogue and has hardly any stage directions at all, with the exception of conveying who has entered the scene or who has left.

4Q1

I have been to 4 plays in New York City: Wicked twice, and the Lion King twice.  They were both amazing, and I have no complaints.  Though, if I had to pick between writing a live play or a screenplay for a movie, I would pick the screenplay.  I feel like there is so much more you can do with a movie as to a play.

3Q35

I do mot exist for the simple fact that
He never leaves his room

the only time I do exist
Is when he takes the garbage out during the day
but that is rare
because he does it at night

Shadows only be when the person is in the sun
So I hardly be at all

3Q34

I am a classic introvert
Through in through
I much prefer to be alone as to
in a crowded room

Something about being alone with my thoughts
Is comforting and a little daunting
And I enjoy solace more than partying
But I seem to be the only one.

3Q33

My bed is warm and my sheets are soft
The room is cold but that's because I like it that way
There is music playing but at a low volume
And my window is cracked
so I can hear the birds

The birds chirp and squeak
My bed is warm because
I'm in it
And I like it that way

3Q32

I daydream in this class when
I've finished my work and have nothing to do
Which is common
Most of the time I try to research authors
And that takes up some time
But I get bored easily in this trailer
It feels clammy and sticky in here

3Q31

Daylight Savings Time has royally
screwed me over
I feel weird when I go to sleep and wake up
it messes with my head
it messes with my eyes
i am ALWAYS TIRED
but i was tired before it so that is not
statistically significant
but I hate this time
its hot and the hours seem fleeting
The only good thing i can think of
is that I can sit at my desk with the shining sun pouring through
my window
for another hour.

3Q30

I have a cat
J'ai un chat
She's grey and has white spots
All over, to make her look like a
white tiger.
But she's too sweet to be a tiger
although she thinks she is
she gallops and pounces and
kicks my face while I sleep
I like it though
just having her next to me
coexisting

3Q29

I feel so small even though I'm taller than my mom

But then again, everyone is taller than their mom

The towers above seem to have no end

Paths to heaven, if you believe

or paths to the universe if you don't

I see them as trees

Each with their roots and limbs and 

beings that inhabit them

Ants that crawl around it and animals 

that live in it

Something about these great towers is magical

They make me feel so insignificant yet 

build me up, make me believe that there is something great

in this sad world.

3Q28

The only sport I enjoy
is called something different here
not the logical way of naming things
but something completely different

We call it soccer
I don't know how soccer came about
the term kind of drives me crazy
it just does not make any sense

I call it football
some call it futbol
but it makes sense because
you play with your feet
and there is a ball
foot-ball

3Q27

The sun punishes my neck 

Hardly a wind goes by 

The road in front of me is dirt

Lonely

Alone

I have no reason to be walking down this road

but

I do not not have one either

I feel calm here

upon this dirt road

3Q26

Outside I stood, watching the sun
coat the world with its beautiful golden honey
The wind blew gently across my face and in that moment
I knew this was beauty

The ground beneath my feet lay quiet and still
The dirt, so rich and fruitful provided life and beauty
The river in the distance provided a sound which
would drown out all the impurities
The heat from the sun began to good the leaves
Scorch them and burn tiny holes in them
and in that moment
I knew this was beauty

3Q25

Arms outstretched and eyes wide as ever
The squirrel reached for the nut that was in front of him
He was so close, so close he could taste it
His eyes transfixed upon it

He never did reach it though
he was too little and his hand too small
The nut was to big he would choke on it
Bu this ambition did not cease to exist

3Q24

I did not have any homework yesterday

So that made me smile

It felt good to not have any stress for a few hours

I haven't had that in a long time

I ate and slept and lounged and relaxed

And it was nice to feel alright

and at peace

for a little bit

3Q23

D    T
O    R                                       My darkest fear
N    U
A    M
L    P
D    !

3Q22

The sun is shining and I am sad
That winter has come to an untimely end
My allergies are getting really bad
And I have a lawn to attend
to
Spring makes my nose run and my
eyes water
It makes my head hurt
and my heart sad

I love the cold weather too much

3Q21

The Imitation Game
Was my favorite movie of the last year
The performances were compelling
The cinematography was excellent
And it helped that it was historical drama
because that is my favorite

3Q20

When I was around 11 I was really big into
street hockey
I played with my neighbors
whom I hated.  But it was nice to be able to fight them
then carry on with our days.
I was pretty good too
I could handle the puck well and skate backwards
well too
One time we played for 20 hours in a row
The final score was 33-34
My team won

3Q19

When my dad leaves on Sunday night
and does not get back from New York until the following Saturday
it takes a toll
a large toll
He used to be around all the time but the past year
he has been gone for the large majority of it
We used to play sports together and
do cool things as a family
but he hasn't been around for that in a while.

3Q18

He's red and cuddly, and he knows
how to count
He teaches young children the importance
of a foundation in education
He taught me long ago.

Clear eyes, full hearts, cant lose
some say

But I say:  Big eyes, orange nose, can't lose.

He's friends with a bird and a piece of garbage
Yet he still was profound in my life

3Q17

I have a framed picture of James Joyce
He sits and watches me write.
Countless black and grey pictures of European landmarks
And a constellations calendar hangs on my wall.

In my car, I listen to classical music
Only in the morning though
To get mentally prepared for the day
The drive home, Eastern Cellblock Ukrainian EDM at the highest volume

I have a few candles around my room to give it an old feel
I have a few ten-types
I really want a typewriter
I have a bed for my cat

3Q16

Punctual and efficient

I suppose I fall in the realm of

But I fall short on criticism

And not taking it to heart  

3Q15

What makes me laugh?
A lot of things make me giggle
chortle
cackle
smile

The way animals sneeze and the way humans
hold in their sneezes makes me laugh
The way people trip over nothing and the way
old folks fumble with technology makes me
laugh

Good jokes and funny comedy on TV
Candid interviews
Out of the blew mishaps and
when a politician says something that does not make any sense
makes me laugh

My laugh is like a fingerprint
Nobody has my laugh and thus I do not have
someone else's
Smiling's my favorite
Buddy the Elf, what's your favorite color?

3Q14

You have the power to change the world

For the life you lead is one that is great

For it is you that can imagine the dream

That will which you have is immense

Your will! Oh! How immense it may be!

Down the street you walk, head held high!

You can do it!

3Q13

When life has got you down
Don't worry all to much
For there are people around you who
Will help you carry on
Though you may not want help
Eat your pride whole
And thank them for their service
For they have given a great deal

3Q12

Good morning all
Today we will have a quiz
I am not ready for this quiz
I was not ready for that quiz
That was horrible
It is so cold outside
Tomorrow we will have a quiz
I am not ready for that quiz
I have so much work to do tonight
Goodnight, Nick.

3Q11

Alabama
Because
Connecticut
Delaware
Each
Florida
Georgia

an acrostic poem by nick soluri

3Q10

The cosmos are so big
Too big to understand
Too big for our small little brains to comprehend
So big that Earth is but a mere speck on a thousand mile long canvas

This planet is hurling around the solar system
Which is hurling around the galaxy
Which is hurling around the universe
And who are we?  We are but bits of carbon on a rock

And we think we are important
And we think our problems are big.

3Q9

Heat water until the bubbles rise

Add salt

While the water starts to heat up

Saute garlic and olive oil in a pan

The water is boiled

Add the pasta

Stir the pasta evenly for a few minutes

Only until it becomes al dente

Strain the pasta and finish the garlic and oil combination

The room should smell as if a grandmother is cooking

Combine everything

Eat

 

3Q8

10:22 A.M
Slide to unlock
Open messages
No new messages
Lock phone

10:23 A.M
Slide to unlock
Open Messages
No new messages
Lock phone

10:24 A.M.
Slide to unlock
Open Messages
No new messages
Lock phone

10:25 A.M.
One New Message

3Q7

These desolate lands know all too well
The deep and dark monster that lurks in the well
His body scaled in bright yellow scales, that shimmer
For he is a mighty fine swimmer.

He lurks in the well for many a year
Prying on a lonesome wanderer's coldest fear
He has not a reason to stalk these folks
He does it because he feels an urge

He kills the wanderer in cold blood
For he has not a care to give
He enjoys the air that comes with death
These desolate lands know all too fitting
The deep and dark monster that lurks in the well

3Q6

From the ends of the earth to the places I hold dear

To the small crevices and nooks nobody bothers to look.

I see her

I see her in the sky and clouds 

I see her in the leaves that fall and die

I see her in the air that caresses my cheek like

the farewell kiss

I ponder quite often about her

The way her dimples would show when she smiled

The way her eyes grew when she laughed

I ponder quite often about that

I see her, though sometimes I don't want to

I see her in an argument on the street

I see her in the thunderstorms

She is always there when I want her to, and when I 

don't  

3Q5

He came in the night and woke me
with a fright
He stood over me with his deep voice he
boomed: "Come my brother"
I had not a clue as to why he called upon me
but I felt it was my duty to answer
He needed my powers, I presume,
and so I helped him.
I can fly way up in the sky, faster than anything seen before.
I flew with him, and we went to the epicenter.
The evil, powerful, and hideous beast stood there.

3Q4

The quicker he escaped,
it turned;
Deliciously

page 29 of Elements of Literature

3Q3

I like to read Walt Whitman occasionally, but more of Byron and Tennyson.  Shakespeare is alright, I like his sonnets more than I like his plays.  Ezra Pound and a poem by James Joyce stand out to me though.  Joyce's poem in his novel A Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man is one of my favorites.  It is a villanelle, which is my favorite style of poetry.  As for poets that I try to stay away from, I do not really like have much knowledge of them from basically 1950-present.  That does not mean that if I found a poet that I liked from the present era I would not read it, I just have not found one yet.  I won't write off the present stuff yet though.

3Q2

I feel like I am in the minority of my peers that do not enjoy free verse poetry.  As hard as they are to achieve, villanelles and pantoums seem much more meaningful when done correctly.  I can read a free or blank verse poem and appreciate it, but personally I like the structural aspect of poetry more.  In terms of elements, I really focus on the meter and foot of the poem.  Much like Shakespeare's iambic pentameter, I try to find my own style.  I do not really like to use onomatopoeia in my poems because either I cannot do it correctly or it makes my poem seem elementary. With enough practice, I might be able to achieve something with it.  I read a lot of poetry from Pound and Joyce, though Joyce was not really considered a poet.  Whitman and Longfellow are great as well, and even further back with Byron and Tennyson.  I try not to read or write poems that a 3rd grader could do, to put it bluntly.  Poetry is about touching on an emotion that you can only feel a few times in your life.  When I read poetry, I want the words to drip from my tongue like honey.  If you know the movie I just referenced, well done.

3Q1

Poetry has been a major part of my life.  I was a reader first, of course.  I read Walt Whitman, and e.e. cummings, and a few others.  Poetry always appeals to me because of the depth that can be achieved in the verses.  In school, I feel that delving too far into the poems, hanging on every word, rhyme and sound, has caused the poems to feel tired.  When I read a poem, I want the words to flow off my lips in a way that a piece of prose cannot do.  I want to be able to make the reader feel something they have either never felt before or have not felt in a long time.  The poetry that I write is very much inspired by Poe and Joyce, even simply in the syntax and style.  I try not to classify my poems and say that "I only write free verse" because poetry is much more than that.  Love, desire, sadness, these emotions are much more complex than can be studied in a classroom.  Poetry is much more intimate than something that can be studied in a classroom.  

2Q38

Obviously we all do not have an equal shot at success.  Simple and mundane things like race and sex prohibit people from success.  There is racism and sexism and a whole bunch of other mentalities that close minded people like to harbor.  A black person cannot get a job where a white man could.  A woman cannot get a job where a man could. Until we as a country start to eliminate the inherent racism, homophobia, sexism and many other things, we will never move forward as a nation.

2Q37

This semester has been insane.  College admissions quickly commandeered my free time, and AP classes limited any free time I had.  Honestly, I am so ready to leave high school.  This semester has made me want to go to college more than ever.  Senioritis will soon set in the coming months.  I have a free first period this year which has been NICE!  I am glad the college application process is over, and I am hoping I will get into my top college.

2Q36

Cheating is one of those things that I feel should not be implemented unless absolutely necessary, or in a dire situation.  If the situation presents itself as one where cheating would greatly increase the chances of something good happening, and the situation was of utmost extreme qualities, then I would cheat.  These situations do not come around, hardly a few times in a lifetime.

One of the sad things that I have learned in high school is that the cheating is sometimes necessary.  I have never cheated, but I know people who have, and have received  the benefits from it. 

2Q35

Obviously, if it was not already known, I am very punctual.  I was always told by my parents that if I was not 5 minutes early I would not look respectable.  I try to always be at least 5 minutes early to everything.

2Q34

I have a bad habit of not always believing or accepting constructive criticism.  Sometimes when I write something that I think is really good, I don't want to believe anything bad that someone would say about it.  I really need to kick that habit.  As for a habit that I do not want to get rid of, I don't really know of any that I can think of.  Maybe someone else could point something out about me, and then I would see it, but at the moment I can't find anything that I would want to keep.

2Q33

My favorite story, and it will sound cliche, is The Great Gatsby.  I read it personally before I read it in school.  Fitzgerald's prose captured my mind, and I was completely and utterly enthralled within the story.  I know everyone reads it in school but the book made me want to become a writer.  After looking into Fitzgerald more, I found Hemingway and Joyce, then Woolf and MacLeish, then Pound and Capote.  I read all of it, and enjoyed all of it immensely; but Gatsby will always have a special place in my heart because it made me want to write in the first place.

2Q32

In 2016 I hope to accomplish many things.  I want to get into college before I really focus on anything else.  After I hear back from my colleges in March and know where I'll be going, I want to try to improve my writing much more.  I already write every day but I want to set aside more time and develop a strict routine.  I know that all the great writers were incredibly disciplined, and I want to work on becoming more disciplined.  My writing habits are largely undefined at the moment, I do not have a rigorous routine and specific time that I write.  I want to try and establish one.  That is my main goal for 2016, so to speak.  To try and write more.

2Q31

I slept for the better part of the holiday season.  I did not have any obligations or appointments that kept me out of my house, so I decided to catch up on my sleep.  Most days I would not even get out of bed until two or three in the afternoon.  That was very nice.  We had a party on New Years Eve with more people at my house than I would have liked, but the people were nice.

To say it was sad to come back to school is an understatement.