When she was little, Mclean and her Mom used to always look up and point out three constellations, Orion being one of them. It lets them know they are always there, no matter how far away they really are.
Basketball is her family's game. Her dad played at Defriese, and is a proud alumni. He taught Mclean everything she knows. It also destroyed her family. Her mother had an affair and married the Defriese head coach, leaving Mclean and her dad hating Defriese, her mom, and basketball for a long time.
Mclean reinvents herself everytime her and her dad move. The first time she moved, she became a perky rah-rah girl. She was into cheerleading and school spirit.
Her next move to Westcott she became a drama-mama. Involved in school plays, musicals, and choir.
When she moved to Montford Falls, she became an all-around joiner. She involved herself in many clubs, and helped out in everything she could.
When Mclean is unpacking in Lakeview she finds this guy (Dave) on her back porch. She later finds he is kid genius that choose to go to high school to be normal for once. They become "2 o'clock friends", and he helps her find out who she really is.
When Mclean and her dad move to Lakeview, he begins working at Luna Blu. This represents Mcleans dad's job, of remodeling and fixing restaurants, and also the start of something new for Mclean and her dad.
The first thing Mclean's dad changes at Luna Blu is the rolls. He takes them out of the menu, which brings up controversy. They symbolize old customs, and refusal to change.
Fried pickles are what Mclean's dad puts in the restaurant to replace the rolls. They symbolize new things, and change that comes not only in the restaurant, but in everyone's life throughout the book.
A small circle tatoo on the wrist. Two of Mclean's friends Dave and Riley share this tatoo, because it represents someone they were close to, and their lifelong friendship, something Mclean wishes she had.
Mclean's old car which she had when her parents still lived together. She finds it at her mom and stepdad's shorehouse. It symbolizes old times, and the way things used to be.
A rope bracelt or as called in the book "a gert" symbolizes Mclean and her mom's frequent trips to the ocean together when her parents were still married. It is a reminder of her old mom, and how much she misses being able to do that, and feel like she still had a family.
Poseidon. A motel that Mclean feels is an escape from the world. A familiar yet distant home, that reminds her of what her life used to be like.
This picture represents a new beginning. It is what Mclean is getting at the end of the book. Her dad decides to settle down and live in Lakeview as a chef. Mclean is entering college at the U and is staying close to all of her friends. Mclean and her mom have healed there relationship, and everything is going in the right direction.
