What makes you qualified to give others advice? Why should we listen to you two?

Maybe you shouldn’t! Up to you. We’re not liable for any consequences of our advice. We’re just two slightly manic juniors doing the Lakeside community a solid by answering the questions they’re too scared to ask anyone else. Trust us if you dare.

Any tips on making new friends?

Talk to people. As stupid as it sounds, putting yourself out there is the most difficult and important part. Yes, you will form some friendships that last a total of six days, but you will also meet people who stay with you for the rest of your high school years and beyond.

Do you have to dress super formal for Winter Ball?

No! It’s always fun to wear something unique that you feel really good in, and if that isn’t formal wear, that’s okay. Some other great outfit options are:

1. Full denim
2. Pillsbury Doughboy onesie
3. Anything paired with platform crocs

What is the best non-sport hobby?

I (Zane) really want to get back into knitting. My grandma forced me to learn how when I was younger and I hated it, but now I’ve forgotten and it sounds like such a relaxing and cozy thing to do for the wintertime.

Speaking of cozy wintertime hobbies, I (Lucy) am a big fan of winter baking! Anything peppermint, berry, or chocolate goes. I highly recommend you check out Sally’s Baking Addiction; she has a wonderful winter baking recipe collection.

And that’s a wrap on that question — What’s that? Tatler Editor in Chief Aaron Zhang? At my house with a knife? Telling me to include Tatler? Oh, well newspaper writing, too, obviously.

I’m in love with one of my friends and don’t know what to do. We’re also part of a group so it would make things really awkward. Should I tell her or no?

It’s always helpful to test the waters a little bit before jumping in. Is there a chance that your friend likes you back? What do you think their response would be if you told them? The most important thing is to just trust your gut. If keeping your feelings inside is becoming unbearable, maybe you should tell them; if you’re fine as is and want to maintain stability, maybe keep quiet for now. Trust your instincts! But if your instinct is to pull a Rachel Green and leave her a drunk voicemail, maybe don’t. 

How do I tell if I just like the attention someone’s giving me or if I genuinely like them?

Unfortunately, this is incredibly common. Our advice is going to sound horribly mean and potentially problematic, but you could try making a pro-con list of what you like and don’t like about the person. Think about their personality, any common interests. Then reflect on if there are enough things in the pro-category that make you feel like you genuinely like them. 

How do I go to sleep at a reasonable time?

I (Lucy) have come to terms with the fact that I may never have a stable sleep schedule. Turning this one over to Zane; he’s probably more qualified.

That’s debatable, but I’ll share what I have. I set a screen time limit on my phone and had a friend set the password so I can’t override it. It’s a pretty generous limit, but having it there stops me from staying up too late on my phone.

Is it a bad idea to date freshman year?

Not necessarily, but make sure it doesn’t get in the way of making other friends. Freshman year is one of the best opportunities to meet new people and find your group, so don’t focus so much on the relationship that you lose that opportunity!

Cats, dogs, or llamas?

We were about to say llamas, but don’t they spit on people or something? That doesn’t sound very fun.

Any thoughts on upcoming winter trends?