Sophia Massebeau

I feel like every time I consult Reddit about something I’m left even more confused, like I just got done speaking with an unlicensed therapist. Trying to seek advice about making friends after college is one of those unanswered questions I’m still never satisfied with, no matter how many threads assure me I’ll be okay and should just download Bumble BFF or join a pilates class. That kind of advice feels better left to the extroverts. Maybe it’s easy for them to just strike up a conversation at...

For me, autumn seems to be intrinsically intertwined with The Peanuts Gang. I have fond memories of them growing up, particularly with my grandpa, Pop-Pop, when me and my sister would go over to his house as the months got colder and watch each holiday special with a bowl of ChexMix, getting goosebumps every year Linus walked out on that stage and said “Lights please.” Before we left, I made sure to grab the Sunday comics Pop-Pop saved for me from the newspaper, folded up and waiting on top of t...

My freshman year of college, I actually looked forward to wearing a mask. Or, at the very least, the mandatory COVID precaution doubled as an effective tool to cover my face when I hated it most and started dealing with acne–just little blemishes here and there that suddenly bloomed like a garden one day. I felt gross. My self-esteem plummeted like I was back in middle school with braces and a secret Tumblr account. I couldn’t bear to leave my dorm without hiding my acne as best as I could, smea...

This summer I found myself in Cape May, New Jersey, a quaint, seaside tourist town with old Colonial Style neighborhoods and bagel shop street corners. Our group had been invited to the National Playwrights Symposium as actors, the annual week long event dedicated to helping playwrights share their written work for feedback and hone in on their craft. It was a great week and I got to hear tons of different stories. One Joni Mithcell-esque woman shared scenes of her former cop days; the turtlenec...

I don’t know why, but I immediately think of casual Instagram. Though it’s not easily defined, it’s a profile that probably features a blurry candid of someone laughing down a cobblestone street looking backward in a way that suggests they didn’t know the photo was being taken. Maybe there are a few coffee mugs, an underlined book quote, a cup of fruit or a selfie with an offbeat caption. Whatever the content is, it exudes spontaneity and confidence, a raw quality that promises an unfiltered vie...

I did something very frightening the other day: think. As I brainstormed what to write about for this article, I found myself reminiscing on my own clothing style— my blouses and thrifted silk collared shirts, my loafers and long, often floral, maxi skirts, my Moxie Vintage corduroy purse, cardigans, and excess amount of sweaters. If all these things were to be bundled together and put in a box, someone might refer to my fashion sense as “grandma core.” I wouldn’t completely disagree. I’ve had w...