Pokemon childhood pays off at last

Written by Abi Humber Tuesday, 28 December 2010 17:21

Just as a head’s up to anyone expecting a thoughtful, poignant reflection on the past year of my life. This isn’t going to be it. North Park’s fall semester went a week longer than last year’s, meaning I have only had one week of recuperation since finals and my brain is still sufficiently mushy and incapable of processing complex thoughts.

I have, however, been thinking extensively about Pokemon. Yes, yes. Pocket Monsters.

For those of you who don’t know about Pokémon, allow me to explain. Geared toward children and including video games, an anime television show and trading cards, the whole idea of the Pokémon franchise stems from the hobby of insect collecting. In both the television show and the video game, one’s...

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Younger brother turned out pretty good after all

Written by Abi Humber Tuesday, 30 November 2010 16:42

A few months ago, I was clueless about what to write, so I opened my Facebook status to suggestions for column subjects. I kept a list of those ideas and revisited them each week to see if I felt particularly inspired by any of them. For this week, an idea about little brothers caught my eye

The suggestion was “how to bug your little brother and still let him know you love him.” This column is going to take a slightly different turn, but I wanted to give credit to Dale and Rachel Winter for planting the thought in my mind. Thanks, you guys rock.

My younger brother, Jacob, is now 15. He’s a freshman at Hillsboro High and one of my favorite people on the planet. Those of you who know and understand our relationship might feel...

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Make a difference? So, where do you start?

Written by Abi Humber Tuesday, 09 November 2010 15:43

I want to make a difference, but I don’t know how. I want to know about the world so I can stop being an ignorant American.

I know that I have a voice, and I want to use it to capture the attention of others and call them to action. I want to give myself to a cause, and I want to understand it through and through—the politics of it, its global relevance, why it is worth my life’s dedication. Unfortunately, I don’t know where to start.

In high school, I loved three things: my friends, sports and having fun. I was the center of my universe. As far as I knew, the world stretched only as far as my eye could see (and my eyesight is so poor, I joke about being blind).

My knowledge of the world began to expand as I got involved in a...

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Second college year has been sophomore slump

Written by Abi Humber Tuesday, 26 October 2010 16:37

Expecta­tions can be tricky things. Some­times we set them impossibly high so we push ourselves to our limits. Some­times we lower them to protect our spirits from shattering disappointment. Sometimes our expectations are exceeded, and we are overcome with happiness.

Sometimes, though, our expectations aren’t met, and we can begin to feel a sense of complacency and hopelessness wash over us.

Ever heard of Sophomore Slump? In general, the term is used to describe a second attempt at something that fails to measure up to the expectations set by the first. It is most often used when talking about a band’s second album release, but for the purpose of this column, it refers to my second year of college.

I’m not sure what sort of...

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