THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, January 6, 1995 TAG: 9501050072
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E13 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: TEENSPEAK
SOURCE: BY HOLLY WESTER, CAMPUS CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: Medium: 67 lines
WHEN IT COMES TO hang-in' partners, teens say they want it all.
Cool, funny and inspirational were only a few of the characteristics Norfolk Christian High School students attributed to the people they would choose when asked the question, ``If you could hang with any one person, living or dead, who would it be?''
Some popular choices were singers, such as Harry Connick Jr.; actors, like Jim Carrey; and politicians, such as Nelson Mandela.
Sophomore Katy Taylor, 15, picked jazz musician Connick, because she's a piano player. ``I would like to know how he learned to play the piano so well,'' she said.
Talent wasn't Katy's only reason. ``He's also handsome,'' she added.
Surfer hunk Kelly Slater was another one of Katy's picks. ``I like his relaxed type of personality,'' said Katy, who compared Slater to the people she knew when she lived in Hawaii. ``I wouldn't mind spending a day watching him surf, or surfing with him.''
Besides Queen Elizabeth, sophomore Jae Kim, 15, said palling around with soccer great Pele would be cool. ``I would like to get to know him,'' Jae said. Because he plays soccer for his school, Jae added that he would like to learn some more skills.
Comedian and actor Jim Carrey, of ``In Living Color'' and ``Dumb and Dumber'' fame, was a favorite of eighth-grader Robert Adams, 14. ``He's funny,'' Robert said.
Freshman Drashana Alston, 14, said she would like to travel to South Africa and meet Nelson Mandela, to see ``how the world's changes affected him and his family,'' she said.
While some chose modern-day heroes, others, such as junior Stacy Simons, 16, went back in time.
Simons chose Adam, from the famous Adam and Eve duo, because he would like to see the transition from the Garden of Eden to ``a world of sin,'' he said.
Senior Deborah Fish, 17, another history lover, picked 19th century French impressionist painter Claude Monet. ``I find his paintings rather inspirational,'' she said. ``He's not my idol or anything, I just love his work. I'd like to see him in action.''
Fifteenth century painter, sculptor, architect, engineer and scientist Leonardo da Vinci was the second of Robert's two choices. As a matter of fact, he would like to hang with ``any great mind,'' he said. ``I would like to see how they worked . . . how they went through processes.''
After passing a few other names, such as actress Bette Davis, Drashana decided she could learn the most from the native peoples of this country. ``I would like to see how they survived without hair dryers and make-up,'' she said. ``They had . . . like lead eye shadow. It's kind of weird how we take things for granted.'' MEMO: Holly Wester is a sophomore at Virginia Wesleyan College. ILLUSTRATION: Photos
I would pick Harry Connick, Jr. He's an incredible musician, and I
think it would be fun to talk with him.
Katy Taylor, 15, sophomore
I would want to be friends with Queen Elizabeth. If I were friends
with her, she would buy me anything.
Jae Kim, 15, sophomore
by CNB