Today is my last official day as editor-in-chief of The Pitt News. Just like that, the four years I’ve spent at this newspaper and in college have come to an end. While I was originally going to use this senior column to just recount my time at The Pitt News, I feel as though there’s a few things I must say first.  This past week while my fellow graduates and I have run around trying to finalize essays, take grad photos and prepare for commencement, our campus, like many others across the country, has been in a state of protest. For the past five days, a group of students at Pitt, joined ..read more

Product: Sony Handheld Camcorder  Rating: 0 stars Weak Memory: LOST ALL MY RECORDINGS Reviewed by Donna Linden    When a company advertises that its product has “ultra-reliable data storage” and has “more memory capacity than ever before” and the catchphrase for its advertisement is quite literally “Keep Your Memories Safe”, one would perhaps expect that the absolute last thing their brand-new, ultra-reliable camera would do is LOSE THEIR RECORDINGS. If anyone reading this is located in Clinton, New Jersey, DO NOT go to the Best Buy store on Donnard Street, and DO NOT talk to An ..read more

“Ten thousand years of Death King rule!” the crowd screamed and howled. Grumgux didn’t understand that. Obviously, he loved the Death King and would peel the skin from his soul in service of the cause, but 10,000 years seemed pretty extreme. People don’t live that long; why would they agree to a rule that they wouldn’t even be around for? He’d totally understand something like “100 years of Death King rule!” A hundred years is a pretty reasonable amount of time. Ten thousand? Yeesh. The heralds stood in a perfect circle on the sandy colosseum floor below waving the Death King’s blood-painted f ..read more

The sweet smell of jasmine warm on my scalp, her soft hands, calloused palms weaving through my hair with scented oil aged rich by generations, braids in my hair donned like armor. Fried okra, mutton curry, and porridge humming lightly against the base of my chest. I ate too much. One day in second grade I told her these are the things I like best, and since then this has been the first meal I have at her house, always. It tastes the same, always. I overeat, always.  She takes me out to see her roses, and we sit on the big swing on the porch, my head on her lap staining her saree … tradit ..read more

I spit on the uneven, cracked sidewalk and watch as the pink-red domes spread flat. I watch some of the spittle run down a crack and think of beginnings. I used to look at that same street outside my window and think of the mindless people who walked it before me. I was eight when I first argued for that street, insisting and pleading it was in pain. I would stand outside, forbidding passersby from accessing that particular splintered section. Of course, it bothered the wretched neighbors greatly to take a slight detour into the one-way road. The neighborhood allocations committee apparently d ..read more

Your composition is weak. Four years of unrelenting critique still echoed through his head in a cacophony of unimpressed sighs, dismissive glances, and outright ridicule.  Where is the passion? This work has no soul. During school, he’d recoiled from the constant scrutiny of his work; now, he let these bitter memories flood his mind, fueling the fire of his ambition.  You’ll never make it in the art world. For a time, it had seemed his professors and peers were right. Despite extensive study of the masters — constantly seeking to understand what had made their work persist across the ..read more

I roll the dice.   One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, 10, 11. “You’ve landed on St. Charles Place.” It only costs $140; I’ll buy it. I still have $1,360 left.   10. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, 10. “You passed go, collect $200.”  I am good at this, can we play some more?      Nine. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine. “Congratulations, you have been accepted to the University of Pittsburgh. Advance to Oakland and deposit $18,660 to continue.” But I only have … “It’s okay, we can help you take out a ..read more

When my boss tells me he wants to meet with me, I figure it has something to do with the piss on the wall. It is not my piss, mind you, or for that matter my wall. The wall belongs to the store, a pretty thing, conveniently located between a downtown train stop and an underfunded methadone clinic. The store sells stationery and the uncomfortable decorative pillows that I love and my roommate hates. It also sells self-help books, none of which dare address the topic of working at what the company has taken to calling “The Location With The Urination Challenge.” My company, big on positive minds ..read more

She wants him, But she can never have him. Despite the devastation, She will survive—  Content with the loss.   Simultaneously, the strength in her muscles, bones, and flesh Is crumbling and weak. The fresh air in her lungs has vanished Into the surrounding thin air. Never returning. Never again.   Sitting there, motionless In despondency, She imagines horrible scenarios. Thoughts of people hurting him, Just so she can be his savior, To protect him from the horrors in life, Securing a place in his heart again.   With great imagination, Despite societal expectations, Their f ..read more

From sweet treat runs to mania-induced Instagram reels filmed all over the fourth floor of the William Pitt Union, The Pitt News Editorial Board had quite the memorable year. As graduation quickly approaches, we are both proud of and heartbroken to say goodbye to the senior editors who made TPN exactly what it is.  Betül Tuncer, editor-in-chief. (Nate Yonamine | Assistant Visual Editor) Betul Tuncer, Editor-in-Chief // Ryleigh Lord, News Editor The first time I met Betul Tuncer, she was interviewing me over Zoom for a staff writer position. I remember this moment not because it entirely c ..read more