THE RETURN OF THE SELWYN REJECTS

Our high school, Selwyn College in Kohimarama, Auckland, New Zealand, had a good reputation, but we certainly didn't. Teenage Angst Puberty Pimple Riot Attitude Overdrive. Alot of adolescent mischief. Nothing all too evil, but bad enough not to be invited to the school reunion.

One of my best teenage friends in our gang had a Pentax and photographed everything. David captured two years of high school life. Two years of photos, no one had ever seen since 1988. Photos. Magical. After many moons of being away, I reconnected with my friends back in Auckland. David gave me all the photos, and I wanted to give something back to the gang and whipped up a fanzine, bad scans complementing a badly photocopied 80s style. I titled it "selwyn rejects" to celebrate the little fuckers we were.

One morning, I finished the layouts and emailed all to double-check postal addresses, only to hear an hour later that only days before one of my other best friends had passed away. It was bizarre, even more so after being so layouterishly emerged in a grainy black and white xeroxed time warp. The "selwyn rejects" project was dedicated to Simon, with his beautiful hair. A zoom wake later, all the zines finally arrived in New Zealand, the UK and the States. I believe that it gave all a bit of something to laugh about and cherish the good and bad times we all had.

I have experienced alot of death in my life, yet my relation to it remains very abstract. The years roll by, and the noose of the final breath grows tighter, and one day, any day it can be my turn, your turn. I live with this thought. I do not forget it. And thats why i cherish life, every second. The good and the bad.

Rip Simon. Love ya. Miss you, bro.