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A whole new world
A new fantastic point of view
No one to tell us no, or where to go
Or say we're only dreaming
Real men enjoy Disney movies. Especially Aladdin. And college really is a whole new world.
I freaking love The Ohio State University. Not exactly the most eloquent thought I've ever penned, but it's true just the same. Our beloved University President Gordon Gee has been quoted as saying that OSU is infectious. And he's right, there's a pulse here that's unlike anything else.
Things started pretty slow, as I needed to make all-new friends and such. But it only got better and better. And as usual, there's WAY too much going on to blog about in detail.
So instead, imagine you're about to see the world's greatest movie trailer. I consider this past week to be a mere taste of things to come, a preview of coming attractions. So here are clips, teasers, and scenes from the upcoming epic movie, Rob Goes to College:
*me at the involvement fair, talking to friend from high school*
"Yeah, I can try to help you find Rocketry Club! But I've just come from free food and Engineering Community Service, and I just can't seem to find the Theme Park Engineering Group. What? You signed up for swing dancing? I thought TangoOSU looked pretty cool..."
-----
*me talking to girl I met in Calculus*
"So, a group of my friends is going to go see 8th Floor Improv at the South Campus Gateway. You know, 8th floor, the OSU improvised comedy group..."
*girl rolls eyes*
"Ah thanks, Rob, but, um, not interested. Good try though."
"Wha-? No! I was asking as a friendly sort of thing!"
"Yeah, sure. Better luck next time."
*awkward*
(It should be noted I really wasn't looking for a date and only meant it as a friendly outing. I swear.)
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*Gordon Gee addresses all the first-year students at Convocation, a ceremony that is kind of like graduation, but functions as a welcome instead of a send-off*
"And so, I offer you new students my Top 10 signs you're not having a good day. Number 10: After a lovely afternoon spent in Stillwater Oklahoma, you suddenly realize you've accidentally moved into the wrong OSU!"
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*I sit in Ohio Stadium right behind the North end zone. I am in Block O North, a special cheering student fan section*
"HEY STADIUM! O!"
*the stands to our right*
"H!"
*the stands opposite of us, South Block O*
"I!"
*the stands to our left*
"O!"
And the Buckeyes win...
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*me walking between classes. It does not matter which classes, since this happened at least a dozen times this week*
"Rob!"
*I look for the voice who called my name and instantly recognize a new friend I made at Leadership Collaborative/my dorm, Lincoln/an extracurricular club/a christian event/my high school/somewhere completely random*
"Hi! Wow!"
Ohio State is huge. But it's small enough that it's very easy to run into friends. :-)
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That's all for now. There's so much to do, so much awesome to be had. I need to tell you about my amazing profs (I actually like them ALL, which I hear is weird), my massive homework load, my London Honors class, my experiences at RealLifeOSU and Heritage House (christian organizations), my meeting cool random people at breakfast, my high school friends' reunion on Game Day, Game Day, and about a bazillion other things...
It's awesome. Terrifying, but awesome.
Take care!
-Rob
We’re going and I’m never knowing,
Never knowing, where we’re going,
To go back to where I was would just be wrong;
I’m pressing on.
After nineteen long years of stumbling through life, I find myself about to start a brand new chapter.
…
…
…
Yadda yadda yadda.
Alright, so now that I’ve got all that really deep and cliché stuff out of the way, I can just be honest.
I’m scared. And excited. I’m terrified of leaving. And I can’t wait to get there.
It’s been really, REALLY tough these past few weeks telling everyone I’ve ever loved “Goodbye.� (Well, that’s not technically true, I do have a couple friends going to Ohio State.) But from a high school girlfriend of two years to a very best friend of over a dozen years, saying goodbye has been really hard. My family has been a huge support system for me for my entire life, but now it’s time for me to move out and see if I can figure out what I’m going to do with my life.
I’ve got plans. I’ve got dreams. I’ve even got an idea of how I’m going to get there. But from here on out, it really is me, my life, my own struggles and triumphs.
But I won’t be alone. Even as I leave the friends and family that I love, I know that I’m heading towards a whole new family with all new friends. In other words, The Ohio State University will become home. It happened to O.A.R. I’m betting it will happen to me!
Wish me luck!
Take care,
Rob
No one should take themselves so seriously,
With many years ahead to fall in line,
Why would you wish that on me?
I never want to act my age,
What's my age again?
What's my age again?
On September 17, 1873, The Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College, later The Ohio State University, first opened its doors to 25 students, including two women.
Happy Birthday Ohio State!
On September 17, 1989, The Robert Kapaku, later MessyMechE, first opened his eyes to a world full of awesome people and adventuresome places to explore, including The Ohio State University.
Happy Birthday me!
This particular birthday for me has been pretty darned good. In all the frantic packing (I should start that soon…) and finishing up work (The Air Force Research Laboratories still have things for me to do before I leave!) and the absolutely crazy weather that cut through the US last weekend (a few hundred thousand, including yours truly, lost power for multiple days. Businesses closed, streetlights out, trees tossed about… Bad, but good compared to those people in Texas and the Gulf area, my prayers go out to them) and, and… Well the list goes on. Hectic times, to say the least.
But in all that chaos and confusion and general bedlam, a best friend reached out to me and got me the most amazing birthday present ever. It wasn’t big or expensive or anything like that. But it was absolutely perfect. And it showed a lot of thought and a lot of care. And that best friend is one who I hope to remain in contact with all through college.
The moral of this side story is that no matter how busy or crazy things get, don’t forget to reach out to people! It makes a huge difference! And hey, it doesn’t even have to be their birthday to do it. :-)
At a crazy cool place like Ohio State, (oohhhh, this is where I segue way back on topic) there are over 50,000 students at Columbus alone. That’s 50,000 opportunities to meet someone new and interesting! So no matter how scary it seems, reach out, meet someone, or even wish someone a merry un-birthday!
Take care,
Rob
UPDATE (9/18/08): I thought this birthday wasn't going to be so good, but it turns out it was nothing short of awesome. My friends still in high school went way above and beyond the call, and they are amazing.
It just takes some time,
…You’re in the middle of the ride,
Everything (everything) will be just fine,
Everything (everything) will be all right.
…And then, through the dark clouds of missing my friends and wasting away at home waiting for college to start, there was a beacon. It was a bright, shining light full of overwhelming awesome-ness. And it was named Leadership Collaborative 2008.
And it was good. Better than good. Freaking awesome.
I’m not even sure where I could possibly begin describing how ridiculously amazing the whole experience was. In fact, I cannot, and should not describe it all in detail. Part of the tradition of Leadership Collaborative is the semi-vague nature in which it is described to students beforehand. You learn about the things as they happen, and that meant a lot of really great surprises! And I certainly would not want to ruin the surprise for any future LC’ers out there. Besides, way too much cool stuff happened for me to be able to encapsulate it all in a mere blog entry.
So rather than a play-by-play, I offer a (purposefully vague) Top 5:
5. The Places
Traveling around Columbus is actually pretty cool. My excursions hit everywhere from government buildings to campus landmarks to a butterfly-filled conservatory. Each place was unique, and very cool. The locales also each had a distinct purpose for being a destination, as Leadership Collaborative students like me got to meet some of the most important professionals in the Columbus area.
And while I’m talking about locales, I should also point out that the conference center at North Pointe, which serves as LC Headquarters, is extremely nice. Like, five pillows nice. Huge buffet meals nice. Holy-cow-these-rooms-are-huge nice. It goes a long way to making a jam-packed week feel surprisingly comfortable.
4. The Speakers
Like I said before, at LC students meet all sorts of interesting people. Government leaders, OSU deans, student leaders, Fortune 500 bigwigs… The list goes on. And when I say “meet,� I don’t just mean hearing them give a speech (although they do that too, and they are excellent speakers). I mean that students actually get time to mix and mingle with these people, carry real conversations, talk about whatever they so desire. For example, I got to chit-chat with a Recruitment Head about a really nice Research and Development internship with said Fortune 500 company. Very cool.
3. The Little Things
There are moments during LC where it shows in great detail just how much thought and effort is put into the program. Everything runs very smoothly, and even if something (such as rain on the day of the barbeque, which happened!) unexpected happens, the staff always has a backup plan. I loved how well organized everything was.
There are other little touches too. The staff introduction was hilarious (think playing dress-up gone terribly awry). The final group exercise was touching.
Best of all, there is one night where students both received a little piece of the homes they came from and were also introduced to their future home in Columbus. Those were both very cool surprises. But that’s all I’ll say about that before I give too much away!
2. The Staff
These guys and gals are the best. The LC staff was comprised of some professional staff and some upperclassmen students. And they were all awesome. Every last one of them showed genuine interest in helping us 68 freshmen develop our skills and learn how to be better leaders. The support system during the week of LC was amazing, with group leaders able to carefully balance leading us without making us feel like little kids.
I cannot say enough how great the staff really was. They are all my heroes.
1. The Students
My name is Robert Kapaku. I moved around a little as a small child, but grew up in Beavercreek, Ohio. I have a mother, father, and three sisters.
And now I have 67 new brothers and sisters.
I can honestly say that I liked every single kid at the Leadership Collaborative. Which is crazy cool. I’ve been to camps, even Leadership Camps, before. But this was different, because everyone was so cool. These are the kids who were selected as “do-ers� the kinds of the kids that make stuff happen. And it was awesome. Everyone just wanted to meet everyone, and I did not run into a single unfriendly person the whole time I was there. There were no cliques, no rankings, no divisive presences. Just 68 leaders, ready to (you guessed it!) collaborate.
Without these kids, I would still be stuck in a rut, wasting away at home. But thanks to Leadership Collaborative, I’m not sadly looking back. Head high, hopes even higher, I’m looking forward to an amazing First Year at The Ohio State University.
Take care,
Rob
Though it's hard to let you go
In the Father's hands we know
That a lifetime's not too long
To live as friends
I miss my friends.
I was warned, it’s true. Upperclassmen at Ohio State all pointed out that the Summer before freshmen year you’ll go just a little cabin fever crazy. And they were right.
It is, in fact, much harder than I thought it would be. It’s just so strange thinking about friends, people that I love, people I’ve known since the first grade, suddenly being off and starting new lives. I think I’d be alright with it, except for the fact that I am still stuck at home.
Ohio State runs on a quarter system at present, so all my semester collegiate friends have been gone for a week or two.
So to you, dear reader, I offer these hard-learned lessons I’ve acquired during my time waiting for OSU to start.
How To Stay Relatively Sane Until OSU Begins
1. Get involved with Ohio State FYE (First-Year Experience)! Do a Buckeye Adventure, Buckeye Camp, or (my favorite) the Leadership Collaborative! Without the Leadership Collaborative, I’ll be honest: I might be slowly wasting away into oblivion. But the LC was exactly what I needed: an opportunity to get to know some awesome people who I’ll definitely be keeping in touch with over the next four years. (More on Leadership Collaborative in a future blog entry).
2. Read a book! As you may or may not be aware, I’m a bit of a nerd. And as a nerd, I found it odd that for whatever reason, I had missed out on a big part of nerd culture growing up: Harry Potter. So, this summer I cruised through the seven books, my nerd curiosity was satisfied, and I now appreciate a whole new world of pop culture and inside jokes. (I’m also reading other popular books I missed, like The Da Vinci Code and Freakanomics).
3. Read your Ohio State book! Each Summer the incoming freshmen have a reading assignment in the form of a (usually) interesting book. The topics vary greatly year-to-year, but I definitely recommend giving the reading a once-over.
4. Get a job! I’ve had a great time working at the Air Force Research Laboratories over the Summer. It’s educational, fascinating, and makes me a heck of a lot of money. All these things are great qualities to have in a summer job.
5. Find the letting-go/staying-in-touch balance! Your friends who are gone and away at college didn’t just suddenly drop off the face of the Earth. There’s facebook, e-mail, even *gasp* REAL mail! It’s nice to keep in touch a little bit; just make sure you don’t get too attached or demand too much attention from your old friends. Afterall, they’re busy college kids now, like you soon will be!
6. Look forward! When all else fails, I remember that I have a lot to look forward to at Ohio State. Freshmen year I plan to explore England, help Honduras, initiate involvement, learn lots, and additionally meet multitudes of outstanding nice new fantastic friends. Say that ten times fast!
It’s not exactly a rock-your-socks-off party waiting for school to start.
But I am excited, I am looking forward to Ohio State, and I cannot wait to meet my future friends.
Take care,
-Rob
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