I don’t really like to think about what I would be like today if I never joined The Appalachian, but now that I’m writing this goodbye, I’m thinking about it. So here’s a laundry list of bad character traits I avoided by walking into Suite 217 of Plemmons Student Union three years ago.
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Courtesy of: Emma Speckman I’d continue to write with excessive, flowery language that’s hard to read and easy to hate. And I’d probably think it’s great.
- I’d have a terrible work ethic and there’s no way I would be leaving college with a full-time job lined up.
- I wouldn’t be able to manage my time for sh*t.
- I wouldn’t be a good listener, and I wouldn’t seek out the stories of strangers.
- I’d still have a limp-fish handshake.
- I wouldn’t have met food bloggers, beer brewers, filmmakers, spoken word poets, written word poets, singer-songwriters, drummers, magicians, fire-spinners, yogis, pastors, actors and so many more wonderful souls whose stories I got to make public.
- I wouldn’t know some of the most hardworking and all-around excellent students on this campus, who became some of the most important people in my life.
- (S/o to Lovey, Casey, Jackson and Chris for being exceptional humans that I complain to almost, if not actually, daily.)
Tied with studying abroad for a semester, working as an Arts & Entertainment reporter and eventually editor at The Appalachian shaped my personality and college experience the most. I’m forever grateful for this office, the journalism department and the wonderful people I found through both.
HAGS & KATS, The Appalachian staff.
Emma Speckman, a senior journalism major from Charlotte, was the Arts & Entertainment editor for the 2014-15 academic year. She was on staff for three years.