Junie B. Jones
BY LISA STEMMONS
“It’s me. It’s Junie B. Jones! The B stands for Beatrice. Only I don’t like Beatrice. I just like B and that’s all.”
A first grade teacher’s worst nightmare: the Junie B. Jones series. These grammatically awful little tales had educators worldwide up in arms. Some believe children should be taught proper spelling and grammar from the outset, whereas others are OK with misspellings and other errors as long as children are engaged in reading and writing.
However, what was rarely discussed was Junie’s behavior. By today’s standards she was certainly a boss ass b*tch who wasn’t afraid to talk back or stir up trouble. It’s no wonder I turned into such a brat after reading the books, not to mention my grammer are the horriblest.
With almost 30 books in the entire series, it’s difficult to pick a favorite. After a revolutionary beginning with the release of “Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus,” it’s very hard to follow that up. “Junie B. Jones Has a Peep in Her Pocket” was another standout of the series, but I officially left the fandom after “Junie B., First Grader (at last!).”
My all-time favorite character was Junie’s teacher, Mr. Scary. Talk about an OG. Other worthwhile characters include That Grace, her ex-best friend after a tumultuous breakup and of course, the notorious Tattletale May, the original mean girl.
I can’t say for certain whether or not I learned valuable life lessons from good ‘ole Junie, but she certainly provided me with plenty of laughs.
Instant messaging
By Elizabeth Degnan
It’s hard to believe how much the Internet has grown during our lifetime, and to think it will continue to develop is amazing. I am eternally grateful for the advancement of technology, and of course Facebook and Twitter are cool, but nothing can beat the way it felt to log into your screen name after school to chat with all your friends.
AOL instant messaging was like a passage into teen-hood. Personally, when I got the OK to join the world of AOL, I felt as if I had made it to the top. I remember the night I picked out my screen name; it was one of the most stressful situations of my childhood.
You had to ask yourself: “How do I want people to view me? Would adding another heart be one too many? What if I put an extra ‘XO,’ would people think I was cool?” These were the things that mattered most.
When it came time to chat, waiting for the dial up seemed like an eternity, but the feeling when you heard “You’ve got mail,” was worth it. Whether it was asking your BFF if that boy from fourth grade liked you or spending a half hour trying to write the perfect away message, instant messaging was everything.
The long afternoons of IM drama are forever behind us, but our generation should never forget to thank AOL instant messaging for teaching us the basics of group chatting.
