Published Work
My opinion and feature stories were published in one of Western Washington University's award-winning independent student publications, The Front. Follow the links below to read the full articles.
Photo by: Justin J. Wee
BRIEF: Poet and Performer Wo Chang Comes to Western
The Front
Poet, drag queen and now author, Wo Chan, is visiting Western Washington University on Monday, Oct. 31, in the Multicultural Center to talk about their first book, “Togetherness.”
Chan has been writing poetry for 12 years, but this is their first published book. They said it’s about their life, and they wrote it because they felt a need to help create peace with their younger self.
“Putting these poems to paper helped me make sense with, empathize with, my younger self. I am unpacking all the ways my childhood was shaped by isolation, a loneliness that became exile and estrangement from family and state as I grew up,” Chan said.
The Illustrious Pearl Performs at WWU
The Front
“This is a good drag show because it’s running late, so you know it’s going to be the real experience,” Chan joked as they prepped for their set.
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The audience cheered as Wo Chan, The Illustrious Pearl in drag, strutted into the Multicultural Center on Western Washington University’s campus sporting a bright red lip, a black studded wig cap and carrying a basket full of mysterious props.
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They performed their 20-minute set called, A Formal Feeling Comes, in a style of drag Chan referred to as Powerpoint drag. This involved a combination of visual media, talking and lip-syncing to express themselves.
Photo by: Olivia Carda
Illustration by: Maren Duffy
OPINION: Grief Does Not Have a Timeline
The Front
During my first year of college last year, I dropped to my knees in the parking lot at Mathes Hall as my mom broke the news to me that my dad had died.
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It felt like I was in the movies. You know, that moment when the main character finds out that someone close to them is dead and all they can hear is ringing and their vision becomes blurry.
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Unfortunately for me, it wasn’t a movie. It was my reality, and I couldn’t just turn the TV off or walk out of the theater. It was my life, and it has been changed forever.
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It also just so happened that my dad picked the worst possible day to have a heart attack. Midterms were happening that week -- but during that time, the absolute last thing I was thinking about was my Math 099 test or my English 101 podcast.
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Event Review: Yeehaw! Drag Goes Country
The Front
Dolly Parton, Carrie Underwood and Hannah Montana blared over the speakers of the Underground Coffeehouse as The Royal Gambit drag performers lip-synced and strutted their way across the stage.
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For their second show, Western’s Royal Gambit Drag Club put on their cowboy hats, boots and plaid attire for A Wild West Drag Show that took place on the night of Nov. 18.
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Drag performer Divine Intervention, or out of drag, second-year Maeve Bolling, talked about how this show was more stressful than the first one.
Photo by: Olivia Carda
Navigating Grief for the Long Haul
Illustration by: Sam Fozard
Trying to Rediscover Joy After Losing a Loved One
Klipsun Magazine
As my dad’s coffin lowered, all I could think about was that I would never be the same. One thing that is burned in your brain when you lose someone you love is watching them get put into the ground. I never thought that I would be able to experience happiness again. I mean, how could I? I had just suddenly lost a parent.
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I don’t remember a lot of things the year after my dad died. Scrolling through photos of memories on my phone and hearing stories from friends during that period, it felt like I was trapped in a deep fog and everything felt hazy.
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My dad died during the spring quarter of my freshman year at Western Washington University. I was at a point in my life where I felt the happiest I had ever been. I was finally adjusted to my new life in Bellingham. I was comfortable in my dorm, and I had made real friendships. I was enjoying the newfound freedom of living independently.
The Good Ol' Days
How Students Find Childlike Happiness in Their Adult Lives
Klipsun Magazine
A video may have come across your social media feed, the sound of a mourning dove coo over a slideshow of toys, food and TV shows that shaped the 2000s childhood. Forgotten trinkets and memories of a time that felt easier come flooding back into your brain after being stored away for so long. There is a wave of sadness with the realization that you will never be that age again.
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As children, we can’t wait for the day we trade the plastic car keys for real ones. Now at the age we once coveted, we sometimes yearn for the simplicity of our youth, running through the sprinkler and hanging out with neighbor kids until the sun goes down.
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With the stress of school, internships and figuring out what you want to do with your life after graduation, being reminded of our childhood memories sometimes brings mourning as you feel that it slipped away too quickly.