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Published by the Students of Johns Hopkins since 1896

March 19, 2019 | 40° F in Baltimore

Voices

Hopkins is a diverse university where an incredible mix of cultures, academic interests and personalities coexist and thrive. Here is the section where you can publish your unique thoughts, ideas and perspectives on life at Hopkins and beyond.

Never been kissed: Learning to accept my unsexy love life

By CATHERINE PALMER
February 13, 2018

I’m a 22-year-old college senior, and I have never kissed anyone. It’s not for lack of attraction or for any kind of religious reasons. It just never happened.

COURTESY OF LILY KAIRIS
Lily Kairis first fell in love while studying abroad in the Czech Republic.

Love after love: Finding myself after my first heartbreak

By LILY KAIRIS | February 14, 2018

Before I ever experienced romantic love, I spent years wondering how it might feel. From early 2000’s Taylor Swift ballads to my grandparents’ slow dance at their 50th wedding anniversary: The world around me was teeming with romance.

Learning to love from 300 miles away

By DAVID GLASS | February 13, 2018

I have been dating my girlfriend, Sydney, since Valentine’s Day in the eighth grade. Yesterday marks our seven-year anniversary.

COURTESY OF DAVID GLASS
After spending a few months apart, David’s girlfriend, Sydney, visited him at school in Baltimore.

Repeating my high school identity struggle: embracing polyamory

By JACOB TOOK | February 13, 2018

For better or worse, I’m mostly attracted to boys. But in the last few months I’ve started to think about other labels. And that terrifies me.

Catholic guilt and my relationship with religion

By LILY KAIRIS | February 14, 2018

This Wednesday, as couples celebrate their love and single folks unify in shared independence, another humble holiday transpires below the surface — the beginning of Lent.

PUBLIC DOMAIN
The 40-period of Lent began for Christians this week on Ash Wednesday.

Grappling with the friend zone in modern relationships

By MATTHEW RITCHIE | February 13, 2018

The friend zone. The proverbial Sunken Place in which people hate to be caught. For some, it could be the worst possible thing that could ever happen.

Love as a two-way street: learning the value of vulnerability

By KELSEY KO | February 14, 2018

It was a particularly brisk day — the kind of fall day that teeters right at the edge of winter — when I crossed 31st Street last semester and made my way to the Counseling Center for my very first appointment.

Why I might not text you back right away

By RUDY MALCOM | February 14, 2018

This article had the potential to be the most stereotypically millennial thing I’ve ever written, aside from a caption I came close to posting on my finsta at 2 a.m. last week, in which I called the latest Snapchat update a sensory overload and a grossly inefficient redesign. (Seriously, kids, don’t download it.)

Why are we still talking about my virginity?

By SARAH Y. KIM | February 13, 2018

It is nice, I suppose, to be told that as women, we don’t need men to kick ass. It would be nicer, though, if we women had the luxury of exploring our sexuality without feeling that our power would be somehow diminished.

PUBLIC DOMAIN
Kim argues that women, unlike men, face social pressure to remain virgins.

Janine / CC BY 2.0 
Grinsfelder believes writing, math, and Nutella are somewhat similar.

Math, Nutella and writing: what they all have in common

By WILLA GRINSFELDER | February 15, 2018

Math is like the jar of Nutella sitting on my desk while writing is like the jar of chocolate hazelnut spread on my roommate’s desk.

A look at the teen love story of Catwoman and Batman

By CATHERINE PALMER | February 14, 2018

In honor of Valentine’s Day, I have decided to finally write about my namesake Catwoman, aka Selina Kyle, and her famously tumultuous relationship with Batman, aka Bruce Wayne, as portrayed on Fox’s Gotham.

GAGE SKIDMORE/ CC BY-SA 3.0 
Camren Bicondova plays Selina Kyle or Catwoman on Fox’s show Gotham.

The problems with heteronormativity in American sex education

By RUDY MALCOM | February 13, 2018

During 11th grade Health class, my friend and I joked about the “mystique of the clitoris” when our teacher failed even to mention its existence in her lesson on sex organs. After class, shocked, we asked her why.

I might love ice cream just a little too much

By SUDGIE MA | February 14, 2018

The question of what my favorite flavor is ought to excite me because I love ice cream, but instead it frustrates me. Every time I’m asked this question, I need at least a good 10 seconds before answering. It’s one of the most seemingly innocent questions you could ask to get to know someone better, but it unleashes a flurry of madness in my mind.

COURTESY OF HBO
Despite what some may think, the gratuitous sex in GoT serves a purpose.

A Song of Sex and Power: Portrayals of Sex in Game of Thrones

By ALYSSA WOODEN | February 14, 2018

The Emmy-winning HBO fantasy drama Game of Thrones (GoT) is famous for a lot of things, like its elaborate sets and costumes, its eagerness to kill off main characters, and of course its innumerable graphic sex scenes. Many have criticized the show for being overly pornographic or displaying excessive sexual violence.

Reflecting on and recovering from my friend's recent suicide

By ALIZAY JALISI | February 8, 2018

A month ago, I woke up to the worst text I had ever received in my life. It was a suicide note from a close friend. A few hours later, when another friend and I found him, it was far too late.

Little known facts about the Olympics

By ARIELLA SHUA | February 8, 2018

With the Super Bowl over (and me feeling like the only person on campus upset about the Pats losing), it may feel like time to forget about the lovely distraction that sports provide from more pressing issues. Fortunately, that isn’t the case this year. The 2018 Olympic Winter Games, hosted in PyeongChang, South Korea, begin in only a few days.

Commercials were the real winner of the superbowl

By AMELIA ISAACS | February 8, 2018

I can think of three reasons why people not from America might want to watch the Super Bowl. First is an actual like for American football and a desire to watch the game. In my humble opinion, that’s the least compelling reason to watch, but what do I know?

COURTESY OF BESSIE LIU
Liu’s household often avoided directly talking about death and mortality.

My many thoughts on life, death and mortality

By BESSIE LIU | February 8, 2018

I was probably about five or six when I first learned that my parents were considered to be “middle aged." Naturally, I started preparing for their deaths.

Go ahead, go greek, but stop going on Greekrank

By CARMEN SCHAFER | February 13, 2018

At Hopkins, people are not defined socially by their Greek affiliation.” That’s what prospective students are told when they are just getting to know Hopkins. However, for freshmen drunk off an entire semester of Greekrank and hearsay — and not actual information from real-life sorority members — the opposite is true.

PUBLIC DOMAIN
For Took and Lelchuk, picking a label is akin to picking an ice cream flavor.

Picking a label: the many flavors of sexuality

By GILLIAN LELCHUK and JACOB TOOK | February 13, 2018

We spent weeks trying to figure out what we would call this column. We tried out a lot of ideas. We still aren’t sure that we’re happy with this one. But eventually, we just had to put ourselves out there.

Voices

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