Students prioritize self-expression through accessories

Grace Ai | The Chronicle

In Mason High School (MHS), a place where everyone is busy taking notes and finishing quizzes, some students find ways to make themselves known through stickers on their computers or keychains on their backpacks.

Junior May Le’s computer is covered in various stickers, each telling a different story. Some are from nearby bubble tea shops such as Tiger Sugar and Kung Fu Tea, while others are silly images with Spanish words at the bottom. Additionally, Le also has a Harry Potter keychain on her backpack that she got from the Lego store during the Christmas season. After transferring from Lakota East this year, the stickers are a way for her to tell her story to strangers in a new environment. 

“[The stickers show] that I’m a well-rounded person,” Le said. “They’re just based off of anything I’m interested in, which is [kind of] random.”

For Le, her computer is one of the main things she decorates—her water bottle and phone are left blank, a stark contrast to what is seen on the back of her Chromebook. To her, those items are not as much of a priority in terms of what she puts on them.

“I use my computer more often in public spaces,” Le said. “[I use] my phone too, but my hands are [usually] covering it. [With] Chromebooks, you open it up and people can see [the stickers].”

Le says that there is a difference between Mason and Lakota East when it comes to the computer stickers. At Lakota, students are more intense with the frequency and amount of stickers put on their computers, while Mason students do not tend to decorate with as much fervor.

“[At Lakota East], everyone just slaps stickers on,” Le said. “I knew this one kid [with] his entire Chromebook case covered in skating stickers. Lakota is on a whole different level.”

For others like freshman Michelle Zuo, decorations like these represent a bond with family despite being hundreds of miles away. Before her brother graduated in 2023, he and Zuo decorated his laptop with Hello Kitty and Sanrio stickers after noticing the lack of color.

“I know that sounds silly, but we did spend like an hour doing that,” Zuo said. “And that’s really symbolic because he’s been in college [for two years] now, and he still has those stickers with him [and] he isn’t ashamed of them or anything. So I think that really shows our relationship.”

Zuo also crocheted a whale for her brother’s backpack, as gift-giving became a way for the two to bond despite the five year age gap. According to Zuo, they do not talk much due to each person having a busy schedule, so exchanging things in general became the go-to mode of communication.

“He helps me with my homework while I give him stuff, and I help him as well,” Zuo said. “So I made this for him, and he’s never lost it. He’s never taken it off or anything. It’s just always been on his backpack.” 

When it came to Zuo’s own accessories, she said that they reflect her interest in beads and crafting, including her passion for giving little trinkets to her friends.

“[The accessories] not only show the interest I have for cute little animals and stuff, [but] I think they also show my work ethic, because crochet takes a really long time [to finish] and it takes a lot of time to learn,” Zuo said. “My life has always revolved around competition and academics, but through things like crochet, [I can] show what I enjoy doing.”

However, stickers also have other uses — junior Navya Prabhu said that they serve as a little motivation boost when she does her school work, making it easier to get through the day.

“We’re on our Chromebooks a lot in Mason, and [the] classes just get harder [every year],” Prabhu said. “Pulling [my Chromebook] out just speaks to me.”

Prabhu’s computer stickers change every year, with this year consisting of a Mason Comet Moments sticker, a baby cow, a little penguin with bubble tea, and stickers from her German class. According to her, those stickers also act as a form of nonverbal connection with her peers.

“[When] you’re walking into a new space and you’re sitting with a bunch of different people, pulling [my computer] out opens up communication,” Prabhu said. “[The stickers] tell others that there are no barriers to speaking to me.”