STORIES

The Model

It was an unusually frigid day for early October.

The sounds of lively chatter and laughter from up ahead sounded heavy and muted in my uncovered ears that were freezing from the brisk wind. I looked down at myself and sighed with exasperation. My ghostly pale, unattractively skeletal legs were covered in swollen goose bumps and uncovered for all to see. The shiny, rose coloured fabric of the skirt I was wearing fluttered in the wind, threatening to reveal the underwear I was wearing beneath. The tight, itchy fabric of my bleached white tank top clung to my stomach, doing nothing to conceal the emaciated figure that usually remained hidden under my baggy shirts and oversized hoodies.

The Wait

My story begins almost exactly ten years ago, in a small yet welcoming-looking office.

I was in second grade, and was still naïve enough to believe that everything in the world functioned as it should. I had loved going to school back then- I strived to help my teachers in any way that I could and I read any book that I could get my hands on. The concept of “going out into the world” and learning something new almost each and every day thrilled me- even if that new thing was as simple as how to spell a new word or how to add two and four together.

Gladly Unconventional

Chapter One

“No. I’m not going to do it.”

“Oh come on, honey. She’s a lovely girl… I’m sure that if you just took the time to call her and get to know her a little bit better, you two would hit it off wonderfully!”

“But mother… it’s 1995, for goodness sake. I was under the impression that arranged relationships were slightly outdated.”

Is Fangirling A Religion?

A few years ago, I probably would have self-righteously considered myself a more religiously devoted person than most other people my age. Although I never went to church, I prayed every night before I went to bed and was confident that God would never let me down. Now, however, I’ve found myself becoming more skeptical about God and about religion altogether.

I haven’t become totally disillusioned, but I rarely pray anymore and am finding it increasingly difficult to maintain a strong relationship with God.

Sacrificing the Spotlight

In his play “As You Like it,” William Shakespeare claimed, “All the world’s a stage.”

Though Shakespeare probably did not have North America in mind when he penned this famous statement, truer words have never been written about the interactions between the United States and Canada.

Many Canadians will be quick to say that America steals the hypothetical spotlight from its often overlooked, seemingly invisible neighbor. It seems that while every nation in the world is aware of what happens in the self-proclaimed “land of the free”, Canadian news remains relatively disregarded and unexamined by those living outside of the country.

Reality Television: Trash or Thought-Provoking Form of Entertainment?

I love watching the Emmy awards. I, however, usually become aggravated when the awards for reality television are presented. The presenters are encouraged to rush through the obligatory awkward banter as quickly as possible and those who receive awards are barely given the chance to give a proper acceptance speech.

I understand that most people watching the Emmys probably think that the reality television category is insignificant – after all, reality television has been stereotyped as a television genre consisting of so-called trash that emphasizes sensationalism and the exploitation of individuals.