Who's Who Wednesday?

This week features Alex Wilson!

Age: 16

Description: Alex is usually found in a standard t-shirt and jeans. His shirts are usually music-related, ranging from concert souvenirs to marching show shirts to guitar shop freebies. Alex's longish blond hair gives him a carefree air, which is magnified by his worn jeans and grungy gym shoes. Alex always has his iPod plugged in when he isn't carting his own acoustic guitar around. Alex is a friend's friend and is a lively member of any gathering.

Driving Status: Restricted with his own Jeep. Has a lot of freedom on the road- after suffering through multiple driver's ed classes.

Favorite Class(es): Chemistry and Band- gotta love the rhythms

Instrument: Tenor saxophone for band class, guitar for jazz band and personal use

After-School Activities: Alex is usually wrapped up either in marching band practice or jazz rehearsal/performances. For him, its all about the music. Alex also likes to compete in spring science competitions- outlets for his interest in wacky science facts.

Hobbies: Alex enjoys teaching himself how to play various guitars- so far he has mastered acoustic and electric. Right now, Alex is learning electric bass. Alex also likes to endanger his parent's kitchen and backyard by replicating interesting experiments he sees on television (i.e. Discovery channel).

Weekend Stuff: When Alex isn't crashing with the rest of the crew, he's usually off performing with the school jazz ensemble. Or maybe he's just at home spending some quality time with his television set. Either way, you can bet Alex is having fun and relaxing before heading back to school on Monday.

Come back on Friday to meet Alex's furry companion!

Who's Who Wednesday

This week features Matthew (Matt) Collins!

Age: 16

Description: Matt is in possession of short, dirty blond hair topping his 6 foot plus frame. This makes him about a foot taller than Sam, much to her perpetual annoyance. His baggy jeans, t-shirts, and ripped up sneakers are a constant. His hand-held gaming system and iPod are always stuffed into his pockets when they aren't in his hands.

Driving Status: Learner's permit. He's been too busy to take the driver's ed class so far.

Favorite Class(es): Physics and band- composition's the name of the game.

Instrument: Marches lead bass drum on the battery and plays any drum part he can get during concert season.

After-School Activities: Marching band keeps Matt pretty busy, but he's still managed to maintain a decent presence at the computer club meetings. There's nothing like web page design and learning java script and html code to pass the afternoons by.

Hobbies: Matt is a master gamer and a major computer junkie. Always up-to-date on the latest games, platforms, and software, Matt's the go-to guy for technology. He makes a decent buck helping teachers and small businesses set up web pages. On occasion, he has been known to enter himself in video game tournaments and delights in gaming online.

Weekend Stuff: Matt is either hanging with the others or is camped out on his sofa with his various gaming parephenalia. He loves poning his Sam and the rest whenever they game together, but is usually a decent sport. If he's watching movies, they're action and if he's feeling musical, it's usually classic or soundtrack instrumental. Or anything with a piano.

Next week will feature Alan, so don't miss out! And this Friday, meet Matt's beastly buddy!

Who's Who Wednesday

Welcome to Triple W Numero 3! Get ready for the low-down on Alan Mackes!

Age: 15 1/2 (only 1 month younger than Sam)

Description: Alan has short, curly brown hair and slightly dorky wire-frame glasses. His height is right around equal to Sam's, slightly short for a boy, but not by much. Alan's standard street clothes are a regular t-shirt and a pair of almost-but-not-quite beat up jeans. His worn-out sneakers and Letterman's jacket complete the look.

Driving Status: Alan can drive, just not legally. He's been to lazy to take the permit test and catches a lot of grief for it.

Favorite Class(es): Woodshop and Band- where he practices his woodshop talents on the lockers, equipment, etc.

Instrument: Trumpet. He shares a band locker with Sam and her piccolo and flute. Although sharing may not be the best word... the locker makes a convenient 2nd closet...

After-School Activities: Marching band, marching band, and marching band repair. If marching season's over, then he's always helping the other school groups build things for various events. (Think stage sets, props, pep rally displays, etc.)

Hobbies: Alan is always building or fixing something- or planning how/when to fix something. When he isn't marching on the field, he's usually on the sidelines fixing the drum major's podium, the golf cart, the trailer, the sound system, whatever. Lego bricks have always been of a build-able and collectible interest to Alan. He is also a major sci-fi and fantasy nerd. Star Wars trivia and vampire fascination practically ooze from his pores.

Weekend Stuff: If Alan isn't busy with band or the rest of the crew, he's probably watching re-runs on the Sci-Fi channel. Or weird history shows on History Channel. Or Mythbusters on Discovery. Or... Well, the list is endless. Alan usally has some sort of mechanical project going on in the middle of the backyard or is assembling some weird little gadget on the dining room table... Hang on, Sam wants to say something- "Seriously. If Alan didn't know the rest of the gang, he'd never leave that house but for school and the hardware store! He's just techno-crazy. And to hear him go on about Darth Vader..."

Thank you, Sam for that errm- nice message. Check back next week to meet Matt and don't forget to stop by on Friday to meet Alan's fuzzbomb companion!

Who's Who Wednesday

It's that special time again! Welcome to the 2nd Triple W! This week will feature a closer look at Colby Ryans.

Age: 16

Description: Colby's short, curly black hair tops a brown head and equally brown eyes. He's never seen without his basic black-and-white Chuck Taylor's. Colby may not dress fancy, but he dresses conciously. With all of his clothes meticulously spotless, he may be mistaken as slick. However, his charm quickly corrects any misconceptions. He's fun, flirty, and loyal. He's always laughing- and is ALWAYS keeping an eye on any guy not in the gang that comes anywhere close to Sam.

Driving Status: Restricted license with extra parental limitations...

Favorite Class(es): P.E. and Band- by far the most interesting thing on the schedule!

Instrument: marches on the battery as a snare drum, plays all over the percussion section in concert band

After-School Activities: Marching band. Colby has a job at the local ice cream shop whenever he doesn't have practice. Until marching season is over, Colby won't be receiving much of a paycheck. However, the gang takes shameful advantage of Colby's employee discount by choosing the shop as a favorite pre-practice hang-out. Whenever a school dance comes around, you can count on Colby helping out with the decisions. (No one is going to mess up his chances for a girlfriend.)

Hobbies: Colby loves to turn any surface available into the surface of a drum, including his friends' heads. He enjoys testing his skills in multi-player shooting games such as Halo.
Also, if flirting with every hot girl in orbit counts as a hobby, Colby is definitely at the top of his game. Nearly every moment between classes sees Colby hanging out by some girl's locker, chatting up a storm. Sam considers this embarrasing, but the rest of the gang sees it as blackmail fodder.

Weekend Stuff: Colby usually spends his weekend mornings working and/or practicing for band. The afternoons and evenings are dedicated to his friends and his date. (Sadly, there hasn't been a steady girlfriend...) The movies and the mall are preferred hang-outs. They are far away from work, provide plenty of chics, and there is plenty of visual (cinema/arcade) entertainment. Weekends are the escape from school!

Who's Who Wednesday

I am proud to announce the debut of a new weekly feature: Who's Who Wednesday. Each Triple W post will introduce a character from my new short, Just One of the Guys. Today's star is none other than the heroine herself: Samantha (Sam) Elisabeth Lansey!

Age: 15 1/2

Description: Sam's height is at the short end of average. Her long auburn hair is usually whipped into a braided ponytail and her iPod never leaves her hip. Sam has bright green eyes that are usually looking through contacts. Her regular clothing ensemble includes jeans, a t-shirt, an over-sized hoodie, and a pair of Converse sneakers. While not a physical characteristic, it must be said that "one of the guys" is always lurking in the shadows, prepared to jump in at the best, or worst, moment.

Driving Status: Learner's Permit + driving class (16 comes around and the restricted is hers!)

Favorite Class(es): Culinary Arts class and Band. It's all about the band!

Instrument: flute and piccolo. Sam marches with her piccolo, but she usually plays flute during the concert season.

After-School Activities: Sam's afternoons are usually devoted to marching rehearsal, but beforehand she always walks to the nearest fast-food joint with the rest of the group. On the rare occasions that she doesn't have practice, Sam can usually be found putting extra hours in at the school's culinary building. It's early in the year, so things may change depending on what life throws Sam's way.

Hobbies: Sam is always cooking! Whether she's mixing up snacks and treats for the gang, helping the parentals out with dinner, or preparing potluck type foods for band trips Sam is always tuned into her music and up to her elbows in flour. She also loves to create playlists for herself and her friends from her dad's vast collection of CD's and the newest hits on the internet.

Weekend Stuff: Sam's weekends belong to Colby, Matt, Alan, and Alex. Running around the neighborhood, spending hours at the movie theatre, crashing at each other's houses... You name it, Sam's either doing it or is planning to get to it. That is, if there isn't a band competition or a family friend coming to visit...

I certainly hoped you enjoyed meeting Sam today! Prepare to meet Colby, a flirtatious goof like no other next Triple W!