2008 Woodie Awards
Taking Risks: Some Students from far and Abroad at Manhattan College
Brian O’Connor
Issue date: 2/9/05 Section: Features
While Manhattan had the promise of recreation both off and on campus, Kristen ultimately chose the school for its size, saying "I liked the idea of going to a small private school."
While having most of the student body come from nearby states, Kristen is not bothered by the fact that she experiences a homesickness that can't be cured by taking anything less than a plane.
Kristen says, "I don't really think it affects the school experience that much that most people are local. I envy the people who can go home regularly, but at the same time I recognize that being so far away from home, and not having the opportunity to go home whenever I feel like, forces me to adjust to living at school."
Kristen thinks of her distance as a positive thing, saying "If I were able to go home every weekend I would have no real incentive to make new, good friendships at school. I would be able to spend my weekends with the friends I already have back home instead."
A Psychology and Urban Affairs double-major, Kristen can often be found in the Greenwich Village at one of its myriad hole-in-the wall bars or cafés. Enthralled with the cty, Kristen doesn't seem to mind the travel time it takes her to get back home.
In fact, Kristen has been subject to celebrity sightings, even a little celebrity snot: when traveling back to New York City, she shared a flight with Steve-O from "Jackass" and "Wildboyz." As luck would have it, Steve-O's seat was next to Kristen's, and she made small talk while he was very apparently drunk. After a while of chit-chat, Steve-O promptly fell asleep, on the shoulder of Kristen. After a long period of slumber, Steve-O began to moan, and wipe his nose with the palm of his hand. To Kristen's disgust, Steve-O then began to lick the same hand he used to wipe his nose. Pinned to her seat by the slumbering star, she was forced to watch him eat his own mucus for most of the flight back to LaGuardia International Airport.
Though affected by the incident, Kristen is determined to make her mark here at Manhattan, and New York City. "I'm here to experience something else," she says, "I think it's important to take yourself out of your comfort zone and go somewhere else because that's one way you can grow as a person."
While having most of the student body come from nearby states, Kristen is not bothered by the fact that she experiences a homesickness that can't be cured by taking anything less than a plane.
Kristen says, "I don't really think it affects the school experience that much that most people are local. I envy the people who can go home regularly, but at the same time I recognize that being so far away from home, and not having the opportunity to go home whenever I feel like, forces me to adjust to living at school."
Kristen thinks of her distance as a positive thing, saying "If I were able to go home every weekend I would have no real incentive to make new, good friendships at school. I would be able to spend my weekends with the friends I already have back home instead."
A Psychology and Urban Affairs double-major, Kristen can often be found in the Greenwich Village at one of its myriad hole-in-the wall bars or cafés. Enthralled with the cty, Kristen doesn't seem to mind the travel time it takes her to get back home.
In fact, Kristen has been subject to celebrity sightings, even a little celebrity snot: when traveling back to New York City, she shared a flight with Steve-O from "Jackass" and "Wildboyz." As luck would have it, Steve-O's seat was next to Kristen's, and she made small talk while he was very apparently drunk. After a while of chit-chat, Steve-O promptly fell asleep, on the shoulder of Kristen. After a long period of slumber, Steve-O began to moan, and wipe his nose with the palm of his hand. To Kristen's disgust, Steve-O then began to lick the same hand he used to wipe his nose. Pinned to her seat by the slumbering star, she was forced to watch him eat his own mucus for most of the flight back to LaGuardia International Airport.
Though affected by the incident, Kristen is determined to make her mark here at Manhattan, and New York City. "I'm here to experience something else," she says, "I think it's important to take yourself out of your comfort zone and go somewhere else because that's one way you can grow as a person."