Page 5 – The Waltonian

In 2008, the sports section of the Waltonian had communication studies student Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson as its editor. In 2019, Robinson came back home and was a speaker at Windows on the World. As the current sports editor, I took time after Windows to ask him a few questions and get to know him.

As a student, Robinson not only spent his time editing and writing for the Waltonian; he was a sports announcer for basketball, soccer, and field hockey. Robinson has been a sports writer practically all his life; specifically, he focuses on basketball. As a child in Brooklyn, New York, he spent time hosting his own show for the Brooklyn Nets. He spent much of his time at Eastern covering men’s basketball.

Robinson describes his experience as a journalist at Eastern as a great tool for his future. When asked what he carried the most with him from his time at the Waltonian, Robinson described the personal aspect of journalism. “Building relationships” and “being close with players” is something Robinson said is extremely important and helped his career.

Funny enough, Robinson said that he always saw himself coming back to Eastern to present at Windows on the World. However, he wanted to do things “his way” as he put it. His presentation was titled “Validation vs. Vindication: Sensing God’s Purpose for your Life.” Rather than speak for fifty minutes (as one typically does at Windows), Robinson spoke for about 25 and then he showed a video delving into his topic more in depth.

Since graduating from Eastern, he has become a columnist for Basketball Society, a basketball podcaster, and an analyst for ESPN. In his career, he has interviewed and talked to basketball legends such as Carmelo Anthony, Lebron James and Ben Simmons.

With over 22,000 followers on Twitter, he is fortunate enough to have connections with basketball greats from all over. He spends much of his time traveling all over the country talking on a variety of television shows, podcasts and YouTube shows. Needless to say, Robinson has become a big name in the world of professional basketball.

Robinson also spent time recently with the team he used to love announcing for: the men’s basketball team. During the home opener, he participated as a color analyst along with current Eastern student Kenneth Osbourne Jr.

Although he no longer pursues college basketball as his main source of writing material, he definitely had thoughts about the 2019-2020 Eastern men’s basketball team.

“I like the team, I like the coach,” he said of the current Eagles. He noted their chemistry and their ability to work as a team. When asked if any one player stood out, Robinson did not hesitate giving his thoughts. “I like William Blet,” he said. Blet, a junior forward, stands at 6 foot 8, and Robinson notes that he thinks Blet will go far. “The sky’s the limit for Blet,” Robinson said. “If he continues to stay consistent like he has, he will be a candidate for many conference awards.”

Another player who caught Robinson’s eye was first year forward Sasha Lut. “In the time that he got to play, he took advantage of it,” Robinson notes.

While he has not been a student at Eastern for over ten years, Robinson loves to connect with the Eastern family. He is still Facebook friends with his professors and a number of Eastern students, and it is not odd to see him post about Eastern Athletics every now and then. Robinson is grateful for the things he learned at Eastern, and he can not wait to come home again.

A Jew(ish) Christmas: Christmas as a Christian kid in Jewish town.

Cherry Hill, New Jersey is a town known for its diners, it’s mall and its synagogues. As one of the few Christians in town, it is not odd that I adopted some of the traditions my Jewish classmates and neighbors I grew up with. Typically (when Hanukkah doesn’t fall on Dec. 25), my Jewish friends spend their Christmases at local movie theaters, watching movies released the week (or day) of Christmas while eating food from local Asian restaurants.

This year, the movies to watch include Cats, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Just Mercy, and more. As my Mom and I have settled into a more lowkey style of Christmas, we will be spending this upcoming Dec. 25 watching the new movie, Little Women, a film adaption of the classic Louisa May Alcott novel.

When it comes to food, most of the non-Christian families eat Chinese food after their movies. Before we hit the local AMC theater, my Mom and I get brunch with the family (avoiding the ever awkward Christmas dinner), and then we grab some coffee from a local roaster. Saxby’s, a rising coffee chain based in Philadelphia, seems to be the shop we’re ending up at this year.

Finally, my Mom and I have a unique tradition that is saved for the end of the day. Every Christmas night, we bake a cake and blow out birthday candles. Why do we make a birthday cake on Christmas? Well, as a kid, I referred to Christmas as “Jesus’ Birthday”, and what is our Lord and Savior’s birthday without cake?

My family Christmas traditions are all over the place and influenced by different things in my childhood. At the end of the day, Christmas is about celebrating the birth of Christ with those you love in ways that you love. In my family, that means movies, coffee, and birthday cake.

by: Lillie Allen

A Sunshine State Christmas: Inside how a Floridian spends their holidays.

Palm trees, golf carts and shredded ice sounds like Christmas, right? Well, this might not sound like the average Christmas, but it is the absolute norm for Floridians. I was raised in Bradenton, Florida, and I did not realize how abnormal my Christmas celebrations were before coming to Eastern.

Every year, I go to the Golf Cart Parade. I’m telling the truth. Over 100 golf cart owners gather and decorate their carts (pretty much considered cars in Florida) for the parade. These golf carts roam through multiple neighborhoods. There are not any prizes, but the viewers are gifted with elderly men throwing lollipops at them and saying, “ho-ho-ho.” That is a gift within itself.

On top of the gold cart parade, I think that Floridians are known for decorating palm trees. We still have the average pine tree in our homes decorated, but we also decorate the palm trees in our yards. We put lights up their trunks and also put giant ornaments on their leaves. I can see how the ornaments are specifically for Christmas, but Floridans usually keep the lights on their palm trees. I mean, it is too hard to put them up and down each year, so we tend to keep this part of our state festive year round.

Also, I now know why it is weird for Floridians to have shaved ice sprinkled off of roof tops to mimic snow. This happens everywhere. It usually happened at my high school. We love snow. I mean, ice. Also, is it weird that we usually go to the beach during the holidays? Okay, I guess this is weird, but when you have fantastic beaches, why not take advantage of them?

I can go on forever and a day about the things that I have realized are a tad abnormal about festivities since coming to Eastern, but I cannot say that I am ashamed of them. Remembering these weird things allow me to feel closer to my home. When I feel real snow up north, I am reminded of the fake snow that used to fall from my school’s roof. When I see reefs and fake trees decorated throughout Wayne, I am reminded of my signature palm trees. However, I am also grateful for these new Christmas experiences. They make me feel even more appreciative of my Florida upbringing.

by: Kelsey Fiander-Carr

Mickey D’s On Christmas: How one tradition stayed constant from one country to another.

Growing up in the Philippines was an experience I wouldn’t trade for the world. Most of the time, I was perfectly content living there. In fairness, it was all I knew. But, every year around December, it suddenly became much harder to live there, and not just for me individually, but for my entire family.

Christmas is a time to be around family and celebrating long-held traditions, but that can be hard to do when you live on the other side of the world from most of your family. My mother especially would have a hard time as she is incredibly close to her family, and her side of my family has many annual traditions that we always had to miss living several countries away.

Even Christmas dinner became unmanageable as the overbearing heat made it difficult to want to cook an in-depth large meal. However, we still wanted a reminder of our American life, so one year, my father decided to treat us all to McDonald’s for dinner on Christmas; the most American restaurant around us at the time. This quickly became a loved tradition in my family.

It was nice because we had a meal that we loved, without the prep work or tear down that eternally stressed my mother out. It became such a loved tradition that when my family moved back to the U.S. in 2012, we decided to continue it. Obviously, being back around our extended family we don’t go for dinner (we have ‘proper’ Christmas dinner now). Instead, we get up early and go for breakfast. Thus, we don’t tear into our gifts until after our yearly visit to our local McDonalds.

by: Cait Wooten

When Meg Malkemes walks in a room, she looks exhausted. Despite this exhaustion, her hair is perfectly pulled back into a bun, her eyes are lined with perfect black wings, her outfit is right on trend and her face is covered with a smile. The nineteen-year-old first year is more involved in her communities than most – her resume is extensive and impressive.

On campus, Malkemes has found her place in many different groups and organizations. She is the secretary of the class of 2023, the secretary of MAAC (the Multicultural Awareness Advisory Committee) and a member of Blaze. She also works for the Center for Career Development where she created “make money moves” stickers. In her three months on campus, she has not only found a home, but she has made her presence known.

The political science major spends her time fighting for justice for communities all over the spectrum of marginalization. A self-described activist, Malkemes was inspired by her parents, who are social workers. Hailing from the Boston, Massachusetts neighborhood of Dorchester, Malkemes and her family been involved in community activism in Boston almost all her life. In high school, she was the Director of Civic Engagement in the Mayor of Boston’s Youth Council. She also worked with Vote 16, an organization that fights to bring the voting age down from eighteen to sixteen.

More recently, Malkemes has increased the intensity of her activism. On Nov. 9, Malkemes was a speaker at TEDxYouth Beacon Street at Massachusetts College of Art and Design. Her speech, titled “Why Everyone Needs to Stop Problem Solving,” was about people’s intentions and feelings surrounding activism. While activism is great, Malkemes says that we should be doing activism for the good of others, not just for our own satisfaction.

Malkemes’ passion and drive for change and social justice might remind one of “the Squad,” a group of four freshmen congresswomen making waves in the House. Funny enough, one of these four young women happens to Malkemes’ own congresswoman. Ayanna Pressley happens to represent Dorchester in the House, and it is something Malkemes is proud of.

“Ayanna looks like most people in Dorchester,” Malkemes said. When she talks about Pressley, a sense of light and energy comes to her eyes; you can tell she thinks very highly of the congresswoman.

In everything she does, Malkemes keeps the Lord in mind. To Malkemes, her faith forms her activism. The idea of shalom has especially inspired her and her activism. Shalom, a Hebrew word often translated to the English word peace, is so much more than that in Malkemes’ eyes.

“Shalom is the idea of wholeness and the world has God intended,” Malkemes said.

Malkemes does her work to bring wholeness to the world in every community, and she is doing all of this at the young age of nineteen.

When she was asked if she lives her life by any sayings or Bible verses, she quickly said “1 John 3:16-18!” and pulled out her Bible to find the exact text. This passage easily sums up what her mission is: “We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters. If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person? Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions” (NLT).

Leggings, sweatpants, and sneakers, are no longer exclusively worn to workout, they are seen in everyday fashion. Athleisure is a term created in the United Kingdom, meaning casual and comfortable, suitable for exercise as well as everyday wear.

Athleisure has taken off to become one of the most adapted styles to date. This is because in a time where individuals are always on the go it is necessary to find a style that suits those needs. Sophomore athletic training major and track athlete Kaylee Soboleski finds herself in athleisure most days when she has classes and rotation. “I’m always on the go, between classes, working, and other activities, I like to make sure that I am comfortable, as well as look good,” Kaylee said.

On Eastern’s campus, many student athletes have brought athleisure into everyday styles. It is not uncommon to see lacrosse team members sporting their lacrosse sweatshirts and sweatpants during the colder months as they sit in the Dining Commons, or the softball team wearing their team jackets on their way to the library. Non student-athletes can easily buy team apparel at the bookstore or at Wayne Sporting Goods on Lancaster Avenue.

Companies have really started to capitalize on the new trend. According to Forbes the athleisure industry is worth $44 billion in the US. Lululemon was considered the birthplace of Athleisure when it opened for business in the late 1990s. Since its birth, it has taken over the American market of fashion. Fabletics has created it’s own unique platform by marketing a leggings subscriptions for those who especially love athleisure in their closet.

With the surge of athleisure in mainstream fashion, this has brought other companies to incorporate athleisure into their inventory. Companies like Victoria’s Secret, Fashion Nova, Old Navy, and American Eagle have introduced highly rated leggings and sweatshirts, despite not being known as “athleisure brands”.

On the opposite end, athletic brands like Nike, Adidas, Champion, and Under Armour have become big name brands in the mainstream fashion world. Popular celebrities have partnered with these companies to sell high priced shoes and apparel. Rapper Travis Scott recently partnered with Nike to sell a limited edition $175 pair of basketball shoes.

While atheisure is not new in the world of fashion, it has certainly found it’s place in the mainstream. Whether a celebrity wear leggings to the gym or an Eastern volleyball player wears a team hoodie, athleisure is here to stay.

Sources: Forbes, Nike

Imagine if two Jonas Brothers, two members of Big Time Rush, and two members of One Direction came together to make music and top the charts, not only in America but all over the world. For some Korean pop fans, that has just happened. South Korean label SM Entertainment decided to take some of the most popular members of their boy groups and create a new supergroup called SuperM.

On Aug. 7, SM Entertainment and Capitol Records announced their partnership as well as the group itself. According to Billboard, SM founder Lee Soo-man called the group “the Avengers of Kpop” and includes seven talented members from four different groups (SHINee, EXO, NCT 127, and WayV), all with their own talents and specialties. Not only are the members of four different groups, but they also represent four different nationalities. While the four oldest members are native Koreans, the youngest three are Thai, Chinese, and Korean-Canadian.

An aspect of SuperM that has many turning their heads is their focus on the United States. NCT 127, which has two members in SuperM, signed with Capitol in April, and has released a number of songs in English since this deal was made. Similarly, BigHit Entertainment group BTS and Starship Entertainment group Monsta X have released music with English lyrics and collaborated with American artists this year, and SuperM is following this trend. SuperM’s debut song, titled “Jopping” (a portmanteau of “jumping” and “popping”), released on Oct. 4, had a large portion of the song performed in English.

While the song has been praised by critics and general music fans, Refinery29 reports that fans of the original groups that SuperM members come from have not been as supportive. One fan of NCT 127 stated her concern for twenty-year-old member Mark, who has debuted four different times since he was sixteen. Fans of EXO are concerned that members Baekhyun and Kai will not have enough time to focus on their main group (who also recently lost two members to South Korean mandatory military service). WayV fans are upset because members Lucas and Ten were taken from their original group and were not given screentime or lines in “Jopping”.

Despite fan criticism, SuperM has been dominating global media in the few short weeks since their debut. Their music video has over 33 million views and their North American tour kicks off in early November, complete with a show at the legendary Madison Square Garden in New York City. While they are a Korean group through and through, SuperM is pushing boundaries not only musically, but internationally.

Sources: Billboard, Refinery29, SM Entertainment

While Lacrosse is only “in season” during the spring semester, senior Matt Auletti is always preparing to play his favorite sport. Auletti was a starter his sophomore year in his position as an attackman, but his junior season was sadly cut short last spring.

During an early-season scrimmage, Auletti says he felt a pop in his knee during a practice, and it got to the point where he couldn’t even put on his socks: he was in so much pain. A few weeks later, an MRI showed a torn labrum in his right hip, and it would need surgery; he was out for the season. Auletti received said surgery in April and the recovery process has not ended since then.

“I have physical therapy three times a week, and I’m six months post-op,” said Auletti, with a sigh.

This injury and recovery, while keeping him off the field, didn’t keep him away from the game.

“Every practice, every game, I was there to cheer my team on,” Auletti said.

Instead of taking the time to watch game footage, Auletti was spending his time focused on academics and the internship search.

A communication major, Auletti aspires to work in the field of advertising. This summer, he spent his days interning at Harmelin Media, an ad agency in Bala Cynwyd. Unsurprisingly, he also spent his summer coaching youth lacrosse in his hometown in northern New Jersey. Auletti made the two-hour drive home twice a week to help sixth graders learn the sport he loves.

“While I taught them the basics, I tried to teach them some more advanced stuff to get them prepared for high school and college,” Auletti said.

This year, Auletti is ready to come back stronger than ever. It is clear to see that he is ecstatic to begin his final season at Eastern. With the support of friends, family, teammates and coaches, the comeback of number 33 is an anticipated one.

Dear Work-Study family, Hey fam!

How are we doing? All summer I waited patiently to be back in the oﬃ ce, and I couldn’t be happier to be sitting in the ugly black chair behind the desk. I found our department freshman year after searching for internships, and I have come to call this weird little place home.

Whether I need a quiet place to study, a place to relieve my anxiety, a place to chat with friends or a place to make some extra cash, you are always here. Before working here, I never truly loved my job, but now I’m excited when my shift rolls around. Seeing everyone’s smiling faces when I walk in and sitting in the terribly squeaky chair behind the desk is the highlight of my week.

Outside of work, this place is my safe place. When we aren’t working, we can have the weirdest conversations that always make me laugh. I will never forget talking about early 2000’s cereal with everyone’s favorite chaplain or watching Grey’s Anatomy as we scrambled to ﬁnish an event. When I need a place to cool down after I’m feeling anxious, the oﬃce door is always open and stocked with candy. There is a reason that so many people come to visit even when they don’t have appointments; our oﬃce is a little happy haven that accepts everyone with open arms.

The best part about this job, though, is the strides I have made academically and professionally. Scrolling through our special website, I found the internship I always wanted.

You all encouraged me when I missed shifts to be an intern and cheered me on in the daunting task that is the job search. My resume and LinkedIn proﬁle have been boosted because of our resume wizard, and I highly recommend everyone giving her a visit.

Love always,

The shortest girl in the oﬃce