Tag Archive for: column

COLUMN: Here I go again: lessons for future me, from me


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I finished the journal I’ve been keeping since I was 17 this week. The last page of writing was basically a love letter to the book itself. I made a list of all the things it survived. Then I read through past entries. In one, I described uncontrollable itchiness and napping two or three times a […]

COLUMN: Challenges should not extinguish hope


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On Tuesday night, President Barack Obama delivered a bittersweet farewell address. After eight years as a poised, prepared and conscientious president, it is hard to think back to Obama as the young, springy senator who spoke of  hope so very long ago. But perhaps, deep down, hope had been his mantra since his time as […]

COLUMN: Football has to live up to top ranking


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We told you so! The Trojan family is still basking in post-Rose Bowl glory. All of our kicking and screaming late in the season feels validated after the epic victory in Pasadena — USC is one of the best teams in the nation, and redshirt freshman quarterback Sam Darnold is the real deal. And you […]

COLUMN: Rose Bowl still tastes sweet one week later


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It’s now over a week since it happened. The college football season also officially ended Monday, after Clemson completed a comeback that rivals even ’SC’s. We’ve even had a couple of Trojans declare for the NFL draft already, adding a bittersweet touch to an otherwise perfectly rosy season. It’s now perfectly acceptable for Trojan fans […]

COLUMN: Give “bad” music a chance


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Weezer’s first album, Weezer, also nicknamed “The Blue Album,” saw universal acclaim both critically and financially. Songs like “Buddy Holly” and, my personal favorite, “Undone — The Sweater Song” shot to the top of the charts and found love among their new fans. It seemed as if grunge would finally be dethroned because alternative rock […]

COLUMN: The Bachelor empowers women


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Of those who watch The Bachelor, there are two types of people: viewers who truly enjoy and are invested in the series, and viewers who tune in every other week or so and hate themselves for it. Until last week, I existed wholly outside of this spectrum because I didn’t watch The Bachelor and thought, […]

COLUMN: Let’s thank JuJu for the catches and the drops


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I’m certain that I was just one of the thousands of people who were fervently refreshing junior Juju Smith-Schuster’s social media accounts Saturday afternoon in search of an answer to the question: “One more year?” When the standout receiver tweeted that a decision on his senior season would be announced in “a couple hours” Saturday, […]

COLUMN: Writing and running are not so different


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Running is a lot like writing. For people who don’t do much of either, that first sentence has probably already sent them fast-walking to the exit. But I’d probably make it to the door faster, and I’d tell them to hear me out. Running is already a part of your existence — every time you […]

After the ‘Thrill’ is gone from the pages


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When I first took this column two and a half years ago, I envisioned saying goodbye in a three-part series. The first would be a detailed look at the birth of the column. Part two would be a retelling of its life. Part three would be an in-depth look at its title, “Thrilla on Manilla […]

Strangers bond over childhood nostalgia


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Just last night, I was sitting in a cafe when — briefly, so quietly — I instinctively leaned forward in my seat to catch the faint melody of: Now this is a story all about how / My life got flipped, turned upside down / And I’d like to take a minute, just sit right […]