Memoirs 07-08

Chandler Williams is a San Fran native, but calls East Bay city Berkeley "home". As a senior, he plans on furthering his education at a four year university within the state of California. Apart from spending quality time with his friends, Chandler occasionally indulges himself by basking in his private study, which smells of rich mahogany and holds many leather bound books. He is often refereed to by his nickname
"Dr. Mobius Cassius Earnheart IV".

While more of a science-oriented person, Derek has always had a soft spot for creative writing. In his work, he tries to reflect his thoughts and experiences, and write from his own outlook, shaped by seventeen years of life. Outside school, you'll often find him actively in Ultimate Frisbee and music (listening and producing). Inside school, you'll often find him spacing out. He also enjoys tea, rain, and writing about himself in the third person.

My name is Elsa Churchill, and I have lived in Berkeley, CA my whole life. I’ve been swimming since I was 7 years old, and also love to dance. I like all types of dance, and hope to continue it throughout my life. English has always been my favorite subject, and possibly a major in college.

My name is Monika and I was born in Washington D.C. but raised in Berkeley, California. My trademark is my year long headache. I'm a Pisces so I spend most of my time in the water swimming. I'm on the Berkeley High swim team and I used to be on water polo until I got injured. I love to snowboard!

Aaron		Aaron is currently a student at BHS who plans to attend a UC. His usual activities consist of studying parchment, exercising, and social excursions. Aaron spends his time in his study listening to tunes and paying close attention to nothing in particular. As an adult, Aaron hopes to succeed in the scientific or business fields becoming very wealthy so that he and his family can comfortably live and prosper.
Ai Ping		My name is Aiping, who is also called Ivy, has already "come" to this world for seventeen years. I was born and raised in China. I have an elder sister which is two-years older than me. She is the best sister in the world, and the best model that I look up to since in the past, presence, and the future. I believe every part of your life create your personality, your own unique self.
Albert		My name is Albert and I was originally born in Cambridge, England. My family moved to Berkeley when I was eight because my dad was hired by a company out here. Although I enjoy writing, I also have a passion for building things and making plastic models. I hope to major in mechanical engineering and become an engineer.
Aleksandra
Amalia		Amalia was born in Havana, Cuba, raised in Oakland, and now lives in Berkeley. Her life goals include writing a book, learning to backflip, and being a contestant on The Amazing Race. Although her first love is performing, she plans to major in arts management in college next year. She is thankful that she can now let go of her inhibitions (read her memoir to find out why). She goes by this: “Don’t be afraid of death, be afraid of the unlived life.” And this: “A life lived in fear is a life half lived.” They are basically the same thing.
Ambia		My name is Ambia and I was born and raised in Oakland. Aside from writing, my passions are swimming, and African dancing. I am in the Diamno Coura West African dance company in Oakland at the Alice Art Center. I plan to major in nursing with a minor in dance. My memoir deals with family vacations and friends.
Anna		Anna was born in San Francisco and moved to Berkeley when she was three, where she has lived ever since. She hopes to attend a small liberal arts college next year in a place where it snows.
Andrew		Andrew likes to play and watch sports of any kind, but he mainly plays basketball and runs track and cross country. He is really excited to venture into the new world of college and find his own niche. He wants to connect with nature as a living by becoming some sort of biologist. He considers his spirit animal to be a thresher shark because they are normally calm, but will attack with ferocity if necessary. The same is true for runners in cross country. Read his story to find out about the rigors of a teenager under pressure.
Anthony		My name is Anthony Delgadillo. I am Latino and proud of it. I like writing what is on my mind. I like to hang out with my friends whenever I can. I love business and want to pursue a career in finances and management. Lastly, I love to laugh and smile.
Ari		Ari Marcantonio is the greatest man that ever lived. He understands that his greatness is next to godly and that without him the world would surely collapse. He has many leather bound books.
Bilal
Brandon
Carney		Carney was born in Oakland, California and currently lives in Berkeley. He has lived in Berkeley his entire life, which has shaped how he views the world. You can say that he has been influenced by the liberal city he has lived in, causing him to think that everything that the Republicans have done is bad. Is he right to think that? He hopes to go to UC Berkeley and stay here.
Caroline
Chandler		Chandler Williams is a San Fran native, but calls East Bay city Berkeley "home". As a senior, he plans on furthering his education at a four year university within the state of California. Apart from spending quality time with his friends, Chandler occasionally indulges himself by basking in his private study, which smells of rich mahogany and holds many leather bound books. He is often refereed to by his nickname "Dr. Mobius Cassius Earnheart IV".
Cherie
Danny		My name is Daniel Kowalenko Baltazar. I was born and raised in Berkeley with my two older brothers Nick and Andrew, along with all my Brazilian cousins, aunts and uncles. After growing up at Prospect Sierra, I sought a school with a kick ass music and jazz program, that’s where the BHS Jazz ensemble came in. What I love more than anything in the world is listening to great music and playing my saxophone. Music is the inspiration behind all my writing and creative processes.
Dante
Derek		While more of a science-oriented person, Derek has always had a soft spot for creative writing. In his work, he tries to reflect his thoughts and experiences, and write from his own outlook, shaped by seventeen years of life. Outside school, you'll often find him actively in Ultimate Frisbee and music (listening and producing). Inside school, you'll often find him spacing out. He also enjoys tea, rain, and writing about himself in the third person.
Eleanor		My name is Eleanor, and I was born in Oakland. I have been attending Berkeley High School for four years. After graduating, my goal is to study medicine and to eventually become a nurse. Though I like hanging out with my friends, I also love to help others.
Elsa		My name is Elsa Churchill, and I have lived in Berkeley, CA my whole life. I’ve been swimming since I was 7 years old, and also love to dance. I like all types of dance, and hope to continue it throughout my life. English has always been my favorite subject, and possibly a major in college.
Emily		Emily has lived in Berkeley for a most of her life. Her memoir is about a very sad birthday. Luckily her birthdays since then have been very nice. She’s hoping to attend a college somewhere next year but is unsure whether a higher level of education is worth the application process. Marrying a rich old man seems like a nice alternative.
Emma		Emma currently enjoys two things above all else: bubble tea and Sims. Both of these activities almost always involve the presence of Maddie. This will likely never change.
Erica		Here is a glimpse into Erica’s life via the checklist in her organizer courtesy of Eli: Remember to go extra dumby Make sure we have plenty of stuey in the fridge Talk to Ron Paul about getting soul back Get some tuna You probably may be really very confused whilst reading this memoir. Be open minded. Always.
Erin		Erin has lived in Berkeley since birth with her mother, father, younger brother, and cat. She plans to study architecture after she graduates from Berkeley High School. Erin has danced at BHS all four years and hopes to continue in college. She loves traveling, skiing, and of course, laughing (although her brother says he’s embarrassed by how much she laughs).
Forrest		My name is Forrest Mitchell and I was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. I have attended Berkeley High School after growing in Prospect Sierra since kindergarten. I’m interested in automobiles and the outdoors, however my passion is playing and exploring music. My short story describes a man’s struggle with materialism and the superficial society he lives in. Enjoy.
Hanna		Hanna has lived in Berkeley her whole life. She enjoys cooking, photography, playing guitar and traveling. She hopes to travel someday to South America. Her favorite subject in school is science, specifically Chemistry and Physics, which she hopes to study next year in college.
Hayley		Hayley is almost always writing. Whether crafting stories for fun, memoirs for English class, emails for her job as Jacket’s Managing Editor, or essays for colleges, she is usually found typing on her laptop. In her few free moments, she does presentations with PASSHEN, plays bluegrass fiddle, and goes on random adventures to the beach late at night. Currently, she’s trying to un-addict herself from coffee.
Ina		Ina grew up in Oakland and moved to Berkeley in the 4th grade. She is interested in many things such as reading, writing, learning a new language, sports, dance, and hanging out with friends. This short story of hers is called Last Day and is about a boy named Jack who undergoes a last minute lesson of enlightenment.
James		My name is James Donaldson. I was born and raised in Berkeley, California. I enjoy a walk in the park, view spots from the hills, a gordos burrito, family guy, and of course, memoirs.
Jenny		Jenny has lived in Berkeley all her life and enjoys playing sports, eating, and traveling to other countries. Her favorite cereal is Choco Krispis and has learned to enjoy long car rides. In the future, I hope to not have to write college essays and learn how to cook paella. My memoir is about my summer trip to Spain.
Jeremy		Jeremy Dopkin enjoys relaxing with a nice glass of well aged grape juice, a crackling fire and a blank piece of paper. He will then generally proceed to write elaborate literary fiction short stories which he hopes you will enjoy. If you do not happen to enjoy his writing, he will be happy to discuss your terrible taste with his friends Jack Johnson and Tom O'Lery, who are great debaters and will surely convince you of your error. Have a nice evening.
John		John looks forward to playing DI football and beasting on life. Make haste and read his memoir.
Jon		Jon Chee is a current student at Berkeley High and plans to attend UC Berkeley in the near future. In his free time, he enjoys playing lacrosse, eating Gordo's burritos, and spending time with his friends and family. His most recent piece, New Brooks Cafe, is a story of a man attempting to discover himself during a rough time in his life.
Juan		My name is Juan Acosta and I was born and raised in Berkeley and have attended to berkeley schools all my life. I love to play soccer and I hope I could go somewhere with that. I also love computer arts and would love to have a great job doing that. My short story is about a boy talking about his dads life and how it helped him graduate from one of the best colleges in the world.
Julia		I'm Julia, I'm from Berkeley California, and I have lived here my entire life. I have gone to Berkeley public schools since LeConte Elementry. I have enjoyed learning about the different life styles and cultures of my peers. I love hanging out with my friends, and experiencing life as an individual born and raised in Berkeley. I don't yet know who I want to become in the future, but I know I have been raised in the right atmosphere to succeed.
Kaila		My name is Kaila Harrell. Since I was born I lived in about five different cities All but one are geographically located in the Bay Area. (In chronological order: Hayward, Berkeley,Oakland, Newark and lastly Richmond) My elementary years were spent in Berkeley schools as well as high school. I’ve always had a passion for poetry but I never had the slightest idea that I would one day write a memoir. My memoir is about my relationship with my Mom and the fight that saved it.
Katherina
Liam		Liam was born in Palo Alto, but has attended Berkeley schools since the 5^th grade. Outside of writing he enjoys to play guitar and listen to 70s and 80s rock. Liam is a volunteer at International Rivers, an environmental justice organization. In college he plans on majoring in Environmental engineering. Liam finds inspiration in writing from his friends in family.
Liza		Basically Liza is up for anything. She loves going backpacking and do anything involving the outdoors. She's also a big art and music nerd..proud of it too.and of course eating!!FAT KIDS ALL THE WAT!!are you gonna finish that?shes a crazy artist and guitar player and loves kids. a lot. she likes to part and kick it and be a silly goose.who cares. you only live once.sometimes she likes to play dress up in big flowy dresses and just frolick, pick flowers, and be a hippie.COME PLAY WITH HER!! She's also a little boy crazy. Too boy crazy that it can often lead to her getting her heart broken and ignoring the good-hearted cuties, as you can see in her memoir!
Loquen		My name is Loquen. I was born in San Francisco but I’ve lived in Berkeley my whole life. I love to play soccer and that’s how I spend all of my time. I occasionally find time to write short stories.
Louise		Louise likes dancing, riding her bike and Bed Time. She also likes being useful and skinny dipping (so much that she wrote her memoir about it). But she would really rather be doing one of those things than talk about how much she likes to do them.
Lucas
Maddie		And my Grandpa begat Lee the husband of Barbara, of whom was born Madeline, who is called Maddie. Her interests include but are not limited to Emma Maynard, planet earth, the vocal styling of Elton John, and the finer things in life such as a nice Chianti before bed. She promises her memoir is a funny, easy read and not at all sober. And God saw every thing that she had made and, behold, it was very good.
Madoka		Madoka is Japanese, born in Oakland and now lives in Berkeley. She likes taking long bus rides, listening to her ipod, taking a walk in the morning, chill, likes hanging out with friends but not all the time. Her memoir is about an unpleasant occurrence that she never wants to experience.
Mahiru		Mahiru was born and raised in Oakland but currently lives in Berkeley. She loves to stay at home during rainy day, drink tea covered in blanket, and listen to the raindrop while thinking about the people outside.
Maia
Manya		Manya Maier was born in Seattle, Washington and has been living in California for 9 years. After attending Thousand Oaks elementary school and King middle school she is now a senior at Berkeley High School. Manya enjoys sushi and bubble baths.
Marc		Marc-Alain Miller was born on August 27th, 1990 in Oakland California. Ever since he could write he has had something to say or a story to tell, and has been writing for all of his life. From small stories to entertain himself to branching out to a larger audience in short stories, he has constantly been developing is young and promising style and hopes to pursue a career and publication of his untitled novel which he has been working on amidst his high school life and which is still being laid its basic foundations. He is also very passionate about cinema and his dream is to become the adapter of his own works in the film industry.
Megan		Megan Dervin-Ackerman is seventeen, born and raised in Berkeley, California. Aside from her interest in creative writing, Megan is extremely involved in music. She plans to study major in music in college, with a minor in some type of english or science. She hopes you enjoy her writing.
Michael		Michael Stock-Matthews was born in Berkeley, California. Upon entering his junior year in high school, Michael discovered that he was abnormally adept at badminton. This talent allowed him to athletically abuse a fellow student named John Adams daily with a combination of artful finesse and Olympian power. It was during one of these beatings that Michael decided to enter a local fantasy basketball league. Upon your reading of this text, his team has probably already beaten Chandler’s team. Michael also enjoys writing short stories.
Mika		Mika lives in her humble home with her Grandma, Grandpa, Mother, Brother, Baby, and Pet rabbit named Hamster. She likes eating grapes and talking about random stuff with people on the bus. She was born in Mexico, so forgive her if some of her story doesn’t make sense. Writing short stories in Spanish and translating them into English was harder than she thought.
Mimi		Mimi Clara is an aspiring college freshman, currently residing in North Berkeley. She is the first child of Laura and Jim Clara and sister of John Clara. She enjoys mint gum, magazines, podcasts, scrapbooks, television and to-do lists. In the future, she hopes to find the answers to life’s big questions for herself, but as of now she’s happy just examining them through someone else’s eyes (and hopes readers are too).
Minty		Aminta Kouyate known to most as Minty was born and raised in the bay area, therefore her favorite word is "Hella" and she eats burritos at least once a week. She does not enjoy long moonlit walks on the beach because she does not like being cold for no reason, and she does not enjoy candlelit dinners because she likes to see what she is eating. She is the proud owner of an absurd amount of broken sunglasses, and has never been seen wearing a matching pair of socks. She enjoys eating, dancing, toilet humor and screaming BANDEAU at the top of her lungs. Her favorite movies of all time are; "The Mummy", "Da Ali G Movie", "Return of the Pink Panther" and "Reno 911 Miami"...nuff said.
Molly		Molly is from Berkeley. She goes to Berkeley High and takes Ms. Wilson-Scott's short story class. She wrote a short story in that class and if you click on her picture next to this bio, you're sure to be pleasantly surprised as it pops up on your computer screen.
Monika		My name is Monika and I was born in Washington D.C. but raised in Berkeley, California. My trademark is my year long headache. I'm a Pisces so I spend most of my time in the water swimming. I'm on the Berkeley High swim team and I used to be on water polo until I got injured. I love to snowboard!
Naomi		If you are looking for Naomi at five thirty in the morning, you will most likely find her yelling in a boat on the Oakland Estuary. Between school, crew, and the revered College Application she has almost no free time. In the little time she does have, she enjoys rollercoasters, random historical facts, swingsets, saltwater taffy, and coconut oil.
Natalie		Born and raised in Berkeley, California, Natalie aspires to be a print journalist before the demise of print journalism. Click her picture to read about crepe-paper pineapples and post-middle aged divorcees.
Nick
Nicole
Nikos
Olivia		Olivia doesn’t like to write about herself in the third person, she thinks it sounds stupid, so she’s left the job to me as she sits on her bed and eats peanut butter cookies. If you asked her on November 3rd at 7:16 pm what her three favorite unnecessary things are she would say comforters, cocoa, and hammocks, which are all right next to her so I think she cheated.
Owen		Owen is a literary fiend. Or perhaps that term holds true even beyond the confines of his short stories classroom. Anyways this man is a maniac. He exhibits no self-awareness in his writing, ignoring basic grammatical requirements, and generally demonstrating no desire for his writing to be understood by anyone but himself. Yet with this unconventional style Owen has struck a chord among readers nationwide, and has established a diverse loyal fanbase who eagerly await all his published works.
Paris		My name is Paris Clark and my short story is about a lonely mother, in which I never hope to be.
Phil
Raechel		Raechel is a child of faerie from the land of Askintil (where unicorns and talking tables are a common sight) who sometimes pretends to be a regular high-school girl. Yesterday, she might have danced in the rain. She might have sprawled in the middle of the road to watch the clouds sail by. She might have skipped down the street with the sky in her pocket and a dinosaur tucked behind her left ear. Today, though, she is writing down the stories that live inside her head. She hopes that when all is said and done, she'll have left some art behind
Ra'Jon		Hi, my name is Rajon Lewis. I grew up in Oakland, California and been attending Berkeley public school district since I was I the ninth grade. I love Basketball as many people can see. Its something that I grew up with and never will let it go. I'm 17 years old on my way to college to earn my masters degree. I want to be a head basketball coach for as many levels of basketball as I can be. But besides me working hard to get to college and playing basketball, I love to have fun with my friends and chill on the weekends.
Richard		My name is Richard Marcus and I was born in Oakland but have lived in Berkeley all my life. I have attended in the Berkeley unified school district since I was five. I enjoy watching TV and playing video games. I also like to hang out with my friends and chill. Aside from just hanging out, I like to do film editing, which is what I would like my future occupation to be. My memoir is about me and my friends getting into several confrontations with three individuals.
Rosario		Inspired through music: Boats and birds by Gregory and the hawk
Rose		My name is Rose Kirshner and I am a dancer. Most things that I say or do I can and will relate to dance in some way, either that or something I saw in a movie or on TV. Not only do I refer to dancing, movies, or food more than 10 times per day I also enjoy putting words onto paper.
Roxanne
Samora		Samora was born in Brooklyn, New York and raised in Berkeley. His biggest interests are music, politics and basketball. He loves playing jazz piano, especially with the BHS Jazz Ensemble. He plans to pursue a double major in sociology and jazz performance/composition in college, and then see what happens from there. His short story is inspired by the works of poet Pablo Neruda.
Skye		I dropped out of school after fifth grade, and was home schooled three years before coming to Berkeley High. At home I wrote a lot, and have been writing ever since. I love badminton, videogames, ceramics, books, and spend far too much time watching anime and Asian drama. My biggest dream is to publish several novels, and live a simple, happy life.
Taylor		My Name is Taylor Brown I'm an independent artist currently working out of my sketch book. I express myself through visual art, but have a passion for all forms whether it be writing, acting, singing or anything in between. I hope to use my artistic ability to advocate social justice which has become a focus of my life. These passions stem from the self discovery that I under took after my parents divorce and move to Berkeley. My memoir details the beginnings of this journey and foreshadow the person that I have come to be. I hope you enjoy it.
Tessa		T. Bro is a unique member of the Berkeley community. Having grown up in Berkeley since she was a wee child, Tessa is ready to begin her college adventures. Planning on attending one of the many California colleges, Tessa hopes to explore the topic of Politics and Government. After many stressful hours of trying to compose the perfect conventional short story, T. Bro has conquered the writing lords in this sad story of a woman on the run.
Victor		My name is Victor Jesus Guerrero. I was born in Berkeley,CA. I used to live in Richmond but I moved to Berkeley when I was five. I like to draw a lot. I write short stories to explain the drawings I make. I also play a lot of video games. HALO 3 RULES!
Yohan		Yohan Mehary is the only person in his family to be born and raised in Berkeley, let alone America. He's an Eritrean American senior at Berkeley High who loves to play any sport, but soccer reigns supreme. As for academics, Yohan has a passion for all things "sciency" and hopes to major in a biology/chemistry related field.
Zach		My name is Zach and I was born in Oakland, at Kaiser, and raised in Berkeley, both in California. I spent my elementary and middle school years at Tehiyah Day School in El Cerrito. I love to play Polo in the Water, Barbecuing, and the occasional pick-up basketball game. I hope to go to a college where I can major in architecture, city planning, or environmental economics. My memoir is about how my childhood rivalries with my older brother and younger sisters have shaped how I view other relationships in my life.