By Lorens Lee
Having a meeting of Expresso for determining the final issue’s topic, I suggested interview with the editorial board. The said people seemed embarrassed since it was unexpected, but I wanted to talk about them who have had great efforts for every issue of Expresso so far. Also, I’m sure that all students are curious about their thought of Expresso as much as they have special attachment to it.
1. Why did you join Expresso?
Moses: At the time, writing was one of the few things I had any confidence in, and it’s always been something I enjoyed. I honestly wasn’t thinking too much about any sort of goal when I joined: it was just what I thought fit me well and would be enjoyable.
Daphne: Honestly speaking, I've never participated in any news club activities whatsoever until I joined Expresso; I just thought journalism wasn't my type. But about a month after I'd been living (yes, living) in Daewon, I received an e-mail from Chae Yoojin sunbae (former editor in chief) asking the freshmen to contribute to Expresso. She was asking us to write an article for Agony Aunt, and I was kind of having a hard time adjusting to GLP and all, so I sent an e-mail in reply. Fortunately, my worries were published in the year's first edition of Expresso with Agony Aunt's reply beneath it. I don't know why, but that experience was simply thrilling. I knew nobody paid attention to the article—after all, who wants to hear anyone whining about lack of sleep?—but simply seeing that what I had written was actually printed on paper was enough. When the freshmen were asked to sign up for GLP clubs, I put Expresso as my first choice.
Abby: It was the first publication I saw that had any real student participation in it, and I agree with Daphne in that there’s a certain thrill in seeing your articles regularly published in print. And I really liked the name. But I guess what really sealed the deal for me was when Mr. Bruske, my freshman year lit teacher, gave an extra credit question on a quiz from the first issue of Expresso. That was it. I had to join.
2. Were there any changes in Expresso after you became editors? Did you change?
Moses: Honestly, I don’t think there have been as many changes as we thought there would be at the beginning of the school year. One of the reasons is that there simply isn’t much to change: Expresso is always going to exist for Daewon students, of course, but also in terms of design and content, we basically focus more on refining what we’ve learned than on radically overhauling anything.
As for me, I suppose becoming an editor has made me more responsible about things. I’ve gotten much more used to long nights than before (fun fact: I’m writing this at 2 in the morning!), I can keep track of my schedule, and I’m a lot more understanding when it comes to just how busy Daewon students can be, since the editors have to keep track of literally everybody. The downside, of course, is that I’ve become a touch more cranky about people, but I really, really try not to be.
Daphne: In terms of the way we operate Expresso, lots of changes have occurred: we began using Dropbox, made the reporters write drafts, recruited specialized photographers, and held Friday grammar classes. Moses, Abby, and I tried hard to make Expresso function as efficiently and effectively as possible. We also had lots of other ideas such as publishing advertisements for various club performances and charging them money for each ad (yes, we are greedy, money-sucking pigs...or at least I am). Abby also brought up the idea of using personalized photographs for covers, and I think we've covered that part pretty well, too. The teachers laugh at each of our editions of Expresso, but that's always happened so we decided not to care. Hahaha.
In terms of personal changes, I really don't know. I guess I've become more authoritarian (sorry, freshmen!) in general. I'm normally too lazy to manage to cram anything new in my schedule, and I can't say that I've completely abandoned the deadly habit of procrastination (which is probably why Moses had such a hard time hauling me through the workload), but I've certainly enjoyed working as an editor of Expresso. I'm not exactly a nice person when it comes down to grading stuff, so I'm pretty sure I've pissed off quite a few reporters in the process of criticizing their work. Some of them are probably thinking I'm a stuck-up sunbae who doesn't acknowledge her hubaes' efforts—which is not true, by the way. Nevertheless, it was exhilarating to see that the reporters' writing skills were actually improving throughout the year, and I really look forward to next year's progress as well. I just hope that other members' memories of participating in Expresso are as pleasant as mine.
Abby: I guess we tried to get more writer-editor interaction this year—last year was great, but we never got to see our fantastic sunbaes because everything was operated through email. Moses and Daph pretty much said it all—personalized covers, paparazzi shots, and Dropbox. I haven’t had the chance to edit a lot of articles, but I see that the freshman writers’ stuff is getting much better, and I think this is the welcome change every Expresso crew goes through each year.
As for me, yeah, I did change a lot. For starters, I started getting a lot more cautious about giving criticism, because I realized that what I think is a directly worded, to-the-point comment could seem like vitriol to a scared hoobae. I also started thinking more about writing and journalism because honestly, when you guys ask me questions, I sometimes have no idea what the answer is.
3. Are there any secrets or funny events about Expresso that you remember? (This was quite interesting because their answers were evidently different.)
Moses: Lots of things. The feeling of excitement when I saw something worth putting into paparazzi. And writing stuff down in my Comp notebook to put into the sadly now-defunct Verbatim section. And getting to be the first person to see Eunjeong’s badass cartoons (particularly the GLP style one). And rushing around the stairs before eighth period to snap enough pictures to make the cover for our Olympics/FOLA issue. And watching the window in the debate room during meetings to make sure the mean lady terrorizing the fourth floor wouldn’t barge in. And wiping chalk off the blackboard with my hands.
One very uplifting memory: when we originally promoted Expresso to the freshmen, we were hoping for at least ten or eleven writers. We got seven. I remember coming home from hagwon and checking the inbox literally once every five minutes to see if we would get any more applications. It seemed like the end of the world because Expresso needs writers to function. Of course, when we went back at the start of the second semester, we suddenly got six more people on board. I was bouncing off the walls with excitement: it was one of the most surprising and happy moments of my time in Expresso.
Most of my other memories regard constantly worrying every Friday night that nobody would turn their articles on time. So to the freshmen of 2012: make sure you continue to work this hard next year. Next year’s editors will need you guys.
Daphne: I'm pretty sure this isn't much of a secret anyway, but whenever the editors gather to have a talk, Abby's actually the one with the most power. You can't really out-talk Abby when she gets really feisty, you know. Actually, it would probably be more accurate to say that all three editors are pretty unique personality-wise. If Abby's the hot-headed mistress, Moses is the hype dude exploding with new ideas and enthusiasm, and I'm the reserved (i.e. indifferent), thoughtful (i.e. ignorant) person who chips in occasionally to burst some bubbles by giving a cold stare. We three really are an odd combination: Moses is extra nice and super affectionate; I attempt to be nice and condemn affectionate behavior; Abby refuses to be nice but regularly shows signs of affection (if you don't understand how that works, I suggest you don't try to figure it out). I guess that's what makes us such a good combination in the end. You should really see us when we have editor meetings; it's more as if there are three individual people simultaneously giving pep talks on a single TV show rather than an actual idea conference.
Abby: Haha. Well, apparently the joke is that I wear the pants in this little group but actually this is all just an elaborate scam—I’m powerless under Daphne’s are-you-serious death-ray stare and Moses’ slightly disappointed sigh when I pitch totally random ideas. I guess the most exciting part of being on the editing board this year was interacting with hoobaes, and actually getting to see you guys pitch ideas for articles. Believe it or not, I kind of like you guys.
4. What advice or wishes do you have for the first graders?
Moses: Daewon might suck about plenty of things, but moping around about them has no benefits other than emotional release. Being too pessimistic makes everything look like crap, meaning you end up missing out on a lot of opportunities, and that hurts nobody but yourself. I’m not saying you shouldn’t criticize Daewon when it screws up, because it can and does. I’m saying that Daewon’s ultimately what you decide to make of it.
Be as kind and compassionate as possible to your classmates. If you don’t support the people in the same classroom as you, nobody will. If there are people you think you can never ever get along with, you absolutely can get along with them: tensions tend to be amplified in a pressure cooker like the GLP classroom. Keep an open mind.
If you’re going to badmouth anybody, badmouth your hagwon teachers or your domestic teachers or your parents (although they do a lot for you). Try not to badmouth your classmates.
Don’t drink too much coffee. Do your damn homework. Please don’t sleep in domestic classes. They may suck, but a crappy GPA sucks even more. Keep a book or something else you can work on next to your toilet: time counts in junior year.
Wake up every day planning one thing you can do for somebody else.
Daphne: As I've told several of you more than twice: READ. THE FRIGGIN'. BOOKS. It's absolutely disheartening to see the freshmen ignore such valuable pieces of advice every single year (and yes, that includes us juniors, too). The reason sunbaes give you advice is so that you don't have to go through the same ordeal they have. So, seriously, read books, journals, newspapers--anything that comes handy. You all say you don't have time, but based on my freshmen-year experiences, you have too much time; use it wisely. Don't go on Facebook to like any random comments your friends have posted on their walls: read. Don't go around cracking dumb jokes (although I do tolerate pervy ones) with your friends: read. Don't spend so much time watching webtoons: read. You'll find that it helps a lot.
Abby: Your GPA is like your pregnant wife past her first trimester. It needs constant care, lots of sleepless nights rubbing its feet, and occasional nighttime trips out for ice cream. In other words, always put your GPA first. The other piece of advice is that you should really participate more in GLP classes—read the stuff the teachers give you and really try to join in the discussion; it’s one of the most valuable things this program can give you. Don’t drink too much caffeine, spend your time wisely (though I’m not sure I should be saying this), and just try to enjoy your second year. For me, classes with Mr. Dranginis and Mr. Kim were the best part of my day throughout this entire year.
Besides that, I should say work your asses off because they grow back, but your sophomore year doesn’t.
5. Could you describe yourself in five words?
Moses: A confused work-in-progress.
Daphne: Uptight nerd suffering from smoochaphobia.
Abby: Procrastinating better time-manager wannabe.
Honestly, my original purpose was to listen to Editors’ memories and to have fun, but ironically in reverse, I could learn and realize lots of things such as about school life or writing from this interview. Thank you Moses, Daphne, and Abby for steering Expresso this year!
*“smoochaphobia” is the fear of smooching and receiving smooches.
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