---------------
From: 2good4u
To: blondeshavemorefun
Cc: starlight
Subject: Re: cosmicgirl
fuck off! i was just having some fun with her. and what difference is it going to make in anyone’s life whether i really have hits or not? u guys are 2 pathetic. i’m outta here.
---------------
From: starlight
To: blondeshavemorefun
Cc: 2good4u
Subject: Kaleigh Wyse
ENOUGH ALREADY!! Fighting is not going to help Kaleigh.
i suggest we continue writing to her, recording our hits, and when she gets over whatever it is, we just carry on the way it was before. i don’t know about u, 2good. maybe it’s best if u don’t tell her the truth now. it will completely mess up her experiment.
Shari
---------------
From: starlight
To: cosmicgirl
Subject: Hit
Hi Kaleigh!
I know you’re not writing to me right now, but I’m going to keep sending you my hits and misses. Please write back when you can!
Today my horoscope said that my creative energy would be high, so I tackled my English project. The writing went really well once I got going. Yeah!
Shari
---------------
From: blondeshavemorefun
To: cosmicgirl
Subject: Hit
Hi Cosmic,
I had a very creative day, just like Stargazer predicted. You should have seen the sandwich I created for my mother! Peanut butter, mayonnaise, dill pickles, cream cheese, lettuce, sprouts, tomatoes, cucumbers, onion. Who needs to go to one of those fast-food joints for a good sub sandwich?
I’ve been thinking about how bad I’ve been, not letting you know whether I’m a girl or a guy. That was mean, and I apologize. Because of that, I’ve decided to tell you my name. Are you excited?
Are you?
<
<
<
<
<
Ready now?
<
<
<
Okay. Here it is.
<
<
<
<
eimaj.
Oh yeah. I forgot to mention. It’s in code. You have to unscramble the letters. :)
imaje
---------------
From: starlight
To: cosmicgirl
Subject: Hit
You are going to be SO proud of me, Kaleigh. My horoscope today said that it would be a good day to “confront the situation that’s been bothering you.” So guess what I did. I called a family meeting and told my parents that I was attending school on the mainland next year. They very calmly asked why I wanted to go there. I very calmly explained. They were SHOCKED when I told them how unhappy I am on the island. How trapped I feel. I know I’ve told them — many times!—but I guess I haven’t explained it calmly and clearly until now. (Maybe they didn’t understand the reason behind my little temper tantrums.)
Anywho—guess what! They said that was fine. That they supported my decision because I’d given it a lot of thought. They suggested I commute next year, and then if everything goes well, they will try to find a family on the mainland for me to live with in Grade 12! Can you believe it? My escape plan is becoming a reality!
I sure miss hearing from you, Kaleigh. I hope everything is okay. Love you lots.
Shari
---------------
From: blondeshavemorefun
To: cosmicgirl
Subject: Hit — maybe
Well? Did you guess my name? Did you guess Jamie? So now you know I’m a guy. Or girl. :)
Cosmic, did you notice the subject in this email? The reason I wrote in “maybe” is because I’m not sure if I’m going to do as Stargazer advises. She says to “confront the situation that’s been bothering you.” Well, the situation I’m going to confront concerns you, and I don’t know if I’ll actually send this email once I tell you about it. So I’m not sure yet if it is a hit.
Okay, here’s the situation. Your other two Leos and I have exchanged a few emails because we were worried about why you’d suddenly stopped contacting us. At one point, the guy called 2good admitted that he hadn’t taken your science project seriously. Can you believe it? So now I don’t know if you can use the data he gave you. Some of it might not be completely true. Or maybe none of it is. I suspect this will come as a complete surprise to you, and I’m sorry to be the bearer of bad news.
The reason I may not even hit the send button on this email is because I’m not sure if this is the situation I should be confronting. I already confronted 2good. It didn’t do me any “good.” But I’m wondering if in some way he is right. He implied that what you don’t know won’t hurt you. Maybe he’s right. You could complete the project thinking all your data is legit, score an A+, and Selenski will never know. And neither will you, actually. But 2good, Shari and I will, and I don’t feel right being in on this scam.
There’s another situation that I haven’t confronted, and that is to ask you directly why you’ve stopped writing to us. I’m super worried about you. Mr. Selenski won’t tell us what’s wrong, but we do know your computer is working. Please write to me. Just one word is all I need.
Jamie, who now has to decide whether to hit send or not.
Long pause.
Long pause.
Thinking.
Considering.
Here it goes.
Feb. 25
Writing to an imaginary twin was so stupid. What was I thinking? From now on, it’s Dear Diary. Oh yeah, that’s way less stupid. Why do I write at all? Bad habit.
And yep, the astrologer was bang on this week. The gang was talking about me “behind the scenes.” But then, who cares? Not me.
Record and Analyze Data
Forecast For the Week of
Feb. 26 – March 4
by B.A. Stargazer
Gemini (May 22 – June 21)
You will be facing a solar low this
week. Take things slowly, save
your energy. This is a good time
for reflection and meditation.
A stranger is attracted to you.
---------------
To: B.A Stargazer
From: cosmicgirl
Subject: Science Project
Dear Ms. Stargazer,
I think I told you that I’ve been getting radiation treatment for the past few weeks. Talk about a solar low. It’s not as bad as chemo, and at first I didn’t feel much, but now I’m completely zapped. With my energy gone, it’s hard to get interested in anything. Things I used to care about don’t seem important anymore. Some days it’s hard to remember why I even want to get well.
I decided to write to you today to try to sort out some of my thoughts. Do you remember how, when I first started my report and experiment on astrology, I was so excited? That was in the lull between chemotherapy and radiation. I was feeling okay and the project seemed to have such possibilities. Now I’m having trouble remembering what the big deal was.
I first became interested in astrology about a year ago when I found out about my tumor. There was a lot of anxious waiting around for tests etc. at the cancer clinic. I remember flipping through a newspaper one day and spotting your Sun Signs column. I’ll never forget what the message for Gemini was that day. You said, “Miracles happen when we focus as much on our dreams as we do on our fears.”
I only had one dream, and that was to get cured, so I began to focus on that. I didn’t know how you knew what I was about to go through, but somehow I felt sure you did, and that you wrote that specifically for me. I was pretty naïve, looking back on it, but I silently recited that message before surgery, after surgery and then throughout my chemo treatments, even when I got so sick I couldn’t get out of bed. I recited it while standing in front of the mirror, combing my hair and seeing the huge bal
d spots appear as my hair fell out in clumps. I continued to recite it even when all my hair was gone, and when I had so many sores in my mouth I couldn’t eat anything. Believing in the possibility of miracles got me through that time, and every day I would read my horoscope, looking for hope in what often seemed like a hopeless situation. I was sure I would get well if I continued to focus on my dreams.
Well guess what. The miracle didn’t happen after all. When I found out that I still wasn’t cured after all that horrible chemo, I got mad and decided to give up on horoscopes. That’s when I discovered I’d become addicted to them. I couldn’t not read them. Have you ever heard of that before? I’ve heard of gambling addictions, alcohol and drug addictions, but horoscope addictions? Oh brother.
My science project is on hold. I took a break because I was so tired. I stopped answering my subjects’ emails because it took too much energy to pretend to be a fun, happy-go-lucky kind of Gemini. Now I’ve been told that one of my subjects may have been “faking” his data. I’d begun to suspect as much. So what should I do? Finish the experiment with just two subjects? I suppose I could fake all the data and write the report any way I want to. Mr. Selenski would never know. Whatever, it just doesn’t seem worth the trouble. It’s hard to care about one stupid school project when I may not even be alive a year from now.
Kaleigh Wyse
-------------- From:cosmicgirl
To: jselenski
Subject: Extension
Mr. Selenski,
I have decided not to complete my project after all. Things got too complicated near the end, and now I don’t really think it’s worth it. The whole thing was a stupid idea. I’ll accept the zero I get.
Kaleigh Wyse
---------------
From: jselenski
To: cosmicgirl
Subject: Re: Extension
But Kaleigh, I’m afraid I won’t allow you to give up. You were doing a terrific job, and even if something did go amiss with your data collection, you just need to explain to me what happened in your written report. That’s all part of it. Science experiments are never without their hiccups.
There’s another reason you can’t quit on me, Kaleigh. The truth is, I’m actually becoming interested in astrology! (Please don’t tell anyone. I’d lose my reputation as a levelheaded, no-nonsense, fact-gathering kind of guy.)
And there’s one more reason you can’t quit on me. You still haven’t discovered my sun sign.
Mr. J. Selenski
---------------
From: cosmicgirl
To: jselenski
Subject: Re: Extension
But Mr. Selenski, I’m so tired.
Kaleigh
---------------
From: jselenski
To: cosmicgirl
Subject: Re: Extension
Dear Kaleigh,
You’re forgetting that I have endless patience. (Clue: which sun sign is so patient?) You can finish this project whenever you’re feeling well again. When the treatment is finished you will get your energy back. That is a fact. (And you know I don’t mess around with facts.) So hang in there. This too shall pass, as they say.
Mr. J. Selenski
---------------
From: starlight
To: cosmicgirl
Subject: Hit
Hi Kaleigh,
I hope that whatever is keeping you from writing is getting better. I miss you!
I just keep on getting hits with my daily horoscopes. Today Leos were to “feel some tension or distress as we try to figure out which way to go.” This is so true. I can’t go into details right now, but I have done something really stupid, and now I’m having trouble deciding how to get myself out of this mess!
Guess what. Now that my parents have “discovered” how unhappy I am on this island, they are trying to improve the situation. They’re researching activities I can do off the island, while still remaining a resident. For example, they’ve found an art camp for me to go to during spring break. It is a five-night camp, and they feel it will give me the “exposure to other teenagers” that I’ve been “pining” for. Whatever, I’m really looking forward to it!
Please write to me when you can!
Shari
---------------
From: blondeshavemorefun
To: cosmicgirl
Subject: Hit—maybe
Kaleigh,
I’m afraid I’m doing it again. I won’t know whether I have a hit today until I decide whether to send this email.
I’ve been thinking about you a whole lot. I need to know why you “disappeared” so quickly. I can only think that you’re really really sick. Or you lost all your fingers in an accident. Or you’re depressed. My mom gets very quiet when she’s depressed. Could that be it? You always seemed like the opposite of a depressed kind of person, but as you pointed out yourself, we can create whoever we want to be when we’re online, right?
That’s why I’ve decided to finally come clean with you. It’s been fun playing these little games (guess my name, my gender, etc.), but I’m hoping that if I tell you the truth about me, maybe you’ll tell me what is going on with you.
So, I am James Robert Hopkins. I am a 16-year-old white male. (Very white.) I live at home with my mom. I have no brothers or sisters. My dad lives with his new wife in another city.
That’s about it. Pretty dull, huh? It was more fun being a mystery person.
Whatever.
Please let me know if you’re even out there. I won’t bother writing if you’re not reading.
Jamie
---------------
From: cosmicgirl
To: blondeshavemorefun
Subject: Re: Hit — maybe
Jamie,
Do you realize that’s the first time you’ve used my real name? And this is the first time I’ve used yours. It feels like a defining moment, somehow. :)
I’m sorry I “disappeared.” Can’t explain. Not yet anyway. Thanks for being there.
Kaleigh
---------------
From: blondeshavemorefun
To: cosmicgirl
Subject: Re: Hit — maybe
THANK GOD YOU’RE ALIVE!
I like that defining moment thought. I like it a lot.
Okay, now that I know you’re at least reading this stuff, I’ll keep writing. I’ve quit tabulating my hits and misses because without you responding, I’m not sure you’re even keeping track. I am still reading the horoscopes, though. It does become an obsession.
Things I’ve been wondering:
Is whatever it is that is keeping you from writing, the same thing that made you decide to do school by correspondence?
Are each of us distantstudybuddies hiding behind our computer screens for some reason?
Did that astrologer ever reply to you about the chicken/egg thing?
Jamie
---------------
From: blondeshavemorefun
To: starlight
Cc: 2good4u
Subject: Re: Kaleigh Wyse
Just wanted you guys to know that Kaleigh really is still reading her email, even if she isn’t writing. I’m pretty sure she still has all her typing fingers, so she’s probably sick or sad or something.
Anyway, I think she’d appreciate hearing from you, even if you’re not tracking your hits and misses anymore.
Jamie (formerly known as blondie)
---------------
From: starlight
To: cosmicgirl
Subject: Recording hits
Hi Kaleigh,
I’m wondering if you still want me to record my hits. Since you’ve stopped writing, I thought you may have quit collecting data, too. Yes? No?
I sure miss you. Did you write to Blondie (Jamie)? He seems to know something I don’t. I’m jealous!
Shari
---------------
From: 2good4u
To: cosmicgirl
Subject: hit
Ka
leigh — wherever you are — keep your fingers crossed for me. Stargazer said “leos would be rewarded.” Guess what? I’m being nominated for an academy award.
2good, as always.
---------------
From: cosmicgirl
To: blondeshavemorefun
Cc: starlight; 2good4u
Subject: Data collection
Hi guys,
It’s me. I’m back, sort of. Just dropping in to tell you not to bother collecting data anymore. I’ll just use what I’ve got, if I decide to even finish the stupid project.
Sorry I haven’t been in touch. I just lost interest in the whole thing. I always did think science sucked. I’ve decided astrology sucks too.
Thanks for trying to help me out with the project. You’re off the hook now.
Take care,
Kaleigh
---------------
From: blondeshavemorefun
To: cosmicgirl
Subject: Re: Data collection
Hey! You get me hooked on this stuff and then up and quit! No fair. Why do you think astrology sucks?
Jamie
---------------
From: starlight
To: cosmicgirl
Subject: Re: Data collection
Hey Kaleigh, I’m sorry about the astrology project. What happened? I thought you were really into it.
I hope we’re still friends. I really want to be.
Shari
---------------
From: cosmicgirl
To: starlight
Subject: Re: Data collection
Sun Signs Page 7
