High Life A WEEKLY FORUM FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS : How to Lose Friends and Irritate People
No matter how hard we try, we can’t please all the people all the time.
Unfortunately, when we can’t please others, we sometimes make them mad at us. As time goes by, they either get over their feelings of hurt or . . . never forgive us.
Hot Topics wonders, “Do you have any enemies and, if so, what did you do to upset them?”
“I am my own worst enemy, because I do not motivate myself enough.”
William Wong, 18,
senior, Savanna
“I hate people who don’t like cats.”
Melanie Ebojo, 17,
senior, University
“My best friend is my enemy, because if I tell her my personal secrets--which I meant for her ears only--she will tell them to my boyfriend or other people.”
Faith Watson, 16,
junior, Tustin
“My enemy is Satan. I upset him by following Jesus Christ.”
Kelley Patten, 17,
junior, Irvine
“An enemy on my block stole my bike, so I sprayed him with a fire extinguisher until he turned white.”
Doug Mers, 16,
junior, Ocean View
“Kristen (is my enemy), because we broke up and I slightly insulted her.”
Dave Kellams, 16,
sophomore, Liberty Christian
“Yes (I have an enemy), because of rumors and some of my more irrational actions.”
Durk Zeilstra, 14,
freshman, Heritage
“Yes, the whole freshman class is afraid; especially people I push into the wall for no reason.”
Constantine Maureas, 18,
junior, Huntington Beach
“Yes (I have an enemy), because she did something to upset me. She left all her friends to go out with her boyfriend.”
Staci Chambers, 15,
sophomore, Dana Hills
“I don’t have any enemies because I’m a Christian.”
Amy Har, 15,
freshman, Irvine
“An Oriental girls’ gang in Westminster, because I wanted to be one of them and now they are mad at me.”
Wanda Sutherland, 16,
sophomore, Tustin
“A girl (is my enemy), because she had sex with my boyfriend. She did everything to upset me.”
Marny Matthews, 16,
junior, University
“Bureaucrats, because they restrict young individuals from truly developing one’s individuality.”
Steve Cabinness, 17,
senior, Savanna
“I don’t want to answer this question because my enemy will beat me up.”
Kristin Lueck, 17,
junior, Ocean View
“Yes, I do have enemies. I made derogatory statements about them verbally and on paper, which led to my removal from AP (Advanced Placement) English.”
Adnan Raza, 18,
senior, Huntington Beach
“My friend gets mad at me when I do something she doesn’t want me to do and when I don’t pay attention to her.”
Dana Chen, 17,
junior, Dana Hills
“To upset my enemies, I poison the plants in their yard.”
Dan Myers, 17,
junior, Irvine
“I broke up with my boyfriend, and one of his friends wanted to beat me up because of it.”
Michelle Leake, 15,
freshman, Tustin
“I have enemies who have major differences of opinions with me. I don’t like the things that they are boisterous about. They tend to be very blunt. Also, because of athletics, I compete with a lot of people.”
Chris Chase, 18,
senior, University
“Fast-food establishments and malls, basically because they make my paychecks disappear.”
Shantelle Taylor, 16,
junior, Savanna
“Yes (I have an enemy), but I didn’t do anything.”
Angie Vosch, 16,
junior, Heritage
“Some girl I don’t even know at Huntington Beach wants to beat me up because I called her friend a name.”
Kirsty Savill, 17,
senior, Ocean View
“I have many enemies, although I’m generally a nice guy. I get pleasure from seeing my enemies suffer.”
Van Nguyen, 17,
junior, Irvine
“Regina, because she gets on my nerves every day in keyboarding class. She looks at me.”
Tony Davis, 17,
senior, University
“Satan became my enemy when I started to realize the reality of the spiritual realm. He hates me and he wants to kill me, but I will prevail. I belong to Jesus Christ.”
Jennifer Colon, 17,
junior, Savanna
“Yes (I have an enemy), because I accidentally said something that she didn’t want me to say.”
Teena Connell, 14,
freshman, Heritage
“I don’t have any enemies. I try to be friendly to everyone and am rewarded by having the best friends in the world.”
Bill Hencke, 17,
junior, Ocean View
Next Week’s Hot Topic:
What’s the toughest thing about being a teen-ager today?
Responses gathered by Dana Wilshin (Dana Hills), John Doney (Heritage), Jane Wey (Huntington Beach), Adria Silva (Irvine), Tom Prendergast (Liberty Christian), Felice Wu (Ocean View), Jonathan Han (Savanna), Rachel Tuinstra (Tustin) and Kiley Coble (University).
