Whether you choose to call him Lewis or Teabag, young Miner has become someone very well known through his updates to the Catamount news as a man with not much purpose in life or hope of becoming someone extraordinary. We as readers discovered that Lewis was nothing more than an average, unpopular kid in high school whose results of being bullied followed him through life by his nickname. Well, what's wrong with that? Is it so bad to be someone average or a classified loser? Lewis shows the reader that maybe all we can really be in life is ourselves and that that's just the way things are.
Throughout the book Lewis gives us a huge insight into his life. He shows us the truth, what's real, and although some parts are extremely weird and disturbing there's still a sense of respect that comes from him being brave enough to put himself out there. When so many of his old classmates pretend, or fake happiness, Lewis doesn't try to hide anything. If something makes him happy or unhappy we know. For example, Stacy is engaged to Philly but when Lewis asks her what she sees in him her response is, "What do you mean what do I see in him? He's my fiance, that's what I see in him." (p. 203) She's not really with him out of love. It's more like it's what she thinks is acceptable and expected out of people like her and him. Whereas when Lewis spoke to Gwendolyn at one point he flat out told her, "I don't still love you. I don't still love you at all." (p. 116) Lewis might be messed up and have confused perceptions of love at times but he can still recognize who he is and what he wants out of life. I think that takes strength to step outside of the norm and be yourself.
Towards the end of the book, after Fontana's death, Loretta tells Lewis that Fontana really admired him. She said, "He said you were a guy who did the best you could with what you'd been given." (p.222) It's at this moment that Lewis really starts to consider that idea. He always thought that his whole life was like a waste and that he didn't amount to much but, it makes him consider that that's ok. When talking about the men in his family lineage and all the great things they accomplished with their lives, Teabag states, "I guess somebody had to break that glorious continuum chain...I knew that somebody would be me."(p.178) At a young age he knew that he might not be as good as the rest but he never really expected differently. He didn't have to be someone spectacular because he worked hard to just be himself and be brutally honest about everything. I think Lewis begins to understand this not only in his own life but in the lives of his fellow Catamounts and those around him. Mikey Saladin admitted to using steroids, Craige Sperlman spends his days reading books and magazines after his burn out with his job, and even Gary starts going back to his meetings.Even when they seem to be doing great and have everything, I believe the characters in this book really just want to be honest, open and themselves. That's why they still pick on Teabag, because no matter how much of a loser he may seem, they still respect and envy him for telling it how it is, blunt and real.
Essentially everyone just wants to grow up and be someone productive and great in this world. We want to be someone who makes a difference and is remembered, but what if we don't? What if we end up like Lewis and don't accomplish much in life? Despite all the times that Lewis complains and expresses his dislike of things, I believe that he has accepted who he is and that he has the life he was meant to live. He can't please everyone or have everything that he wants but there are people who want to be around him despite his lacking lifestyle. That's why they asked him to speak at the Togethering and why Fontana admired him so, because Lewis knew that all he had was who he was and that was ultimately ok with him.
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