EMMA PHILBROOK: STUDENT LIFE

Dear Santa. OK, so it's been a few years since I've written. And, yes, I know about the rising cost of reindeer feed due to the effect of an expanding ethanol market, and the detrimental effect that unnecessary gift weight has on any airborne object operating without the benefit of a major lift coefficient. And, yes, I know I'm a bit too old for this.

But this year, there are extenuating circumstances.

I really, really need this present.

Really.

I loved the model I grew up with. If they still make the same thing, I'll take one of those, but something similar would be better than nothing, I suppose.

My old one was well-made and withstood several periods of incredibly heavy use. It was versatile, with a variety of practical applications. It made the task of schoolwork infinitely simpler. And it was easy to use to boot.

It served me well all through middle school. During that time, I developed something of a sentimental relationship with it. When I entered high school, I relied on it every bit as much. I would bring it to school with me on the day of a big test for good luck - and it really did seem to help.

I brought it with me to my AP tests. The rules never explicitly said it was allowed, but they didn't say anything banning it, and the principal never saw it. After I managed a better-than-expected score, I decided to take it with me to school every day of my junior year, which I did faithfully.

I lost it in the SAT testing hall last May. I spent the rest of that day in a state of panic. My mother managed to retrieve it for me the next morning, handing it to me along with the Sunday paper. What a relief!

For the rest of the summer I kept it close at hand, using it very little after Girls State had passed. (During that time, it became indispensable, and despite losing three socks and a notebook I managed to hang on to it the whole time).

Some people said that it was unbecomingly bulky. Others thought it was too old-fashioned and that I ought to upgrade to something trendier. But I wouldn't have parted with it for my life; that's how much it mattered to me.

I lost it at the Knowledge Bowl meet last Thursday. It seemed to give me an extra spurt of good luck, almost as if it knew that it would have to leave me. We had a fantastic score at this huge meet. Imagine, Santa, second in the region! Up against schools twenty times our size the entire meet, and we still held our own! It was incredible. Just incredible. But no sooner was I home than I realized that it was gone.

I can't live without it, Santa. Believe me, I've tried. But with all the highstakes college and scholarship applications I'm saddled with now, I need a little help.

So if it isn't too much trouble, I want a new brain for Christmas.

Thanks.