My name is Jon and I’m from Hong Kong, China.
How did you hear about Thacher? I heard about Thacher from my aunt and uncle, Loretta Zhang and Adam Lazar, CdeP 1987. Once I got a good description about Thacher, I couldn’t resist coming over to take a look.
What I like best about living and studying at Thacher: To me, the most important part of Thacher is the complete and total bond that we share with each other. Every time you see someone on campus, you are able to comfortably start up a conversation. We are also much closer to our teachers than you would see in a normal school, and as such they are always a great help when we need it, as well as just someone to talk to.
My favorite class at the moment is English, as it gives us all a chance to participate freely in a high-level discussion about a given topic. Although the same can be said for European History, it’s slightly different for English as the topics we discuss are a lot broader and not just “cause and effect” as it tends to be in European History.
People at Thacher – peers, schoolmates, faculty, staff and others – who have influenced me positively and how: My fellow classmates, in particular the boys. Being close to the people you live with is a very important part of your Thacher career, and as such I have developed several close bonds with many of my classmates. My advisor freshman year is also a big part of my life at Thacher. She was the one who talked me through my first year when I had no real idea of what to do or how to do it. Without her, I probably would have had a much harder time getting through freshman year than I did.
Advice for someone thinking about going away to school or specifically coming to Thacher: Take a plunge, and experience what is for sure to be the best four years of your life.
Blog Posts by Jon ’14:
Whoa! It’s almost the end of the school year! Who knew that time would fly by so fast!!!
We’ve had a few things going on. Baseball season is in full swing, and we’ve been playing hard. Granted, we don’t have the best record on paper but we’re all having fun, and hoping to get to the playoffs!
We’ve also had the pleasure of having the new a capella voice group, Pentatonix here to perform last weekend. They were absolutely stellar. For those who don’t know, an a capella group is a group of singers who make music solely by their voices. No instruments, no effects, just voice. It was a great experience, and the Chamber singers also had the privilege to meet up with them and learn one of their songs!
With that, we also had Battle of the Bands last week! This is an annual event is held at Thacher in our Performing Arts Center. We invite other schools from the Condor League to compete in front of judges from each school. I was in a group with fellow musicians Grant, Jackson, and Alex. We did a cover of “Paradise” by Coldplay and won second place!!
That’s it so far. Summer… So close, yet so far!
Things are going full blast here at Thacher. I’ve already had a performance at Cal Poly with the Chamber Singers (did I mention that I’m a member of the Chamber Singers yet? Oops!) and am setting up for one near Disneyland this weekend. Academically, the teachers continue to keep us challenged, but are helpful making sure we can handle the workload. They do a great job making sure it’s always within reason.
Baseball season has finally started up, and we’ve played our first game at OVS and came away with a smashing win, 9-1. I was happy about that, even though I wasn’t there because of the Cal Poly performance. It’s the first time that I’ve been able to get some real practice in, since the horse program really takes up a lot of your time. Add in a couple of really dedicated freshmen, and we’ve got a pretty strong team. I’m excited to see how we perform in our league this year.
On a side note, training for a mountain bike camping trip is tough, but still chugging along. I’ve logged 210 minutes this week already on my bike!
Guess I gotta keep on truckin’!
As you’ve probably read by now, we’ve just had a production run of “Curtains.” I’ve luckily managed to secure the role of Oscar Shapiro, the general manager of the “show within the show”. Confusing, yeah? The show begins with the murder of an atrocious leading lady, and brings on Boston PD’s own Lt. Frank Cioffi in order to solve the mystery. As the show faces imminent destruction from critics, Cioffi must quickly solve the murder before the cast decides to pack up and leave for Broadway. And, might I add, love is in the air?
Regardless of how cheesy the plot can be, it was a massive hit with our audiences. The show had one of the largest casts for ever for a Thacher production, and everyone who came got a great big laugh out of the show. I really had a blast performing, and I hope, after the spectacular RENT performance last year, that this production will leave a lasting impression on the Thacher community. At least, until the end of the year.
Among other things, spring trimester is coming up. I’ve already said my farewells to my horse this year, a young mare named Lena (who served faithfully during the three months I got to spend with her), and now I’m getting pumped for baseball season. We only lost one senior from last year, so we have pretty much the same team. Add in a couple of really good freshmen and some newcomers, and the baseball team is primed for a great season! I really do enjoy the sport, and am looking forward to a great season.
Other daily joys include a large Chinese History research paper and me managing to score a 22 out of 25 at the trap range this weekend. It’s more impressive than it looks, and I had a great time developing my skills!
It does feel good to be back. One would think that a break from school would be relaxing and a refreshing way to stop school activities and just have fun. Until the day you go back to school, and you can’t help thinking:
Ugh. School.
Not here. Being from the other side of the world, it’s easy to feel isolated from your friends, family and your culture, but at Thacher, the people you live with are your family. They welcome you with bright smiles and open arms, and really make you think you’re part of the community. Thacher has become like a second home to me, and I will never, ever forget this incredible group that has stayed with me since day one.
One other thing. Musical rehearsals are FUN! Coming from last year’s RENT cast, this year’s more showy Curtains feels strange, but familiar at the same time. People at rehearsal are all great to talk to, and the show is progressing very smoothly. Should be a fantastic show coming up in February.
Until next time!
‘Tis the season to be jolly!!! It is now December, and temperatures are getting to the low 40s. A bunch of stuff happened since the last update. We had tryouts for the winter musical, of which I am still awaiting the cast list. There were a LOT of people who auditioned, and all the guys worked so hard for their dance auditions. We’re doing Curtains, a Broadway musical about a detective who goes to investigate after an actress is killed on a show’s opening night. Showception, anyone?
Other than that, I recently started riding again and it’s been really fun. I’ve spent time working on my AR, or Advanced Rider’s Test, which is a more refined version of the Rider’s test all Freshmen have to go through. School has been busy, as always, and the planning for a ski trip in February has started. It’s going to be a blast!
