Baruch Scholars 2012

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Greetings my fellow LC, Baruch students and faculty, and well, everyone reading this blog.  My name is Alex Boumoussa, I’m 18 years old, and I started Baruch this year as a little freshman, even though no one in the school thinks I’m a freshman.  Beside enjoying long walks on the beach, I also have many other passions, such working on cars, hunting, watching NFL football (The New England Patriots are my favorite team), working out, and meeting new people.  Knowing only 2 people entering Baruch, making new friends and connections is something i have been doing almost every day since I have started here.

Everyone has had events occur in their life that have shaped their values and beliefs.  Though not one specific event comes to mind, my general experiences growing up in a catholic high school, financial plummeting of the U.S. market, and the passings of my grandmother and dog have taught me to be loving and accepting of all people.  To have respect for everyone and not take anything granted because you never know when something you, such as your family and financial security, is going to be taken away in an instant.

My expectations as a college student is to not only make new friends and associates, but to become a better educated person.  I hold education as the foremost important thing in life, for without it it is difficult to earn a good living, help others in your family and community, and be a informed citizens to improve your country.  I know college will equip me the skills I need to succeed in my future.  For my first semester I hope to maintain high grades so I keep my scholarship and to remain a fighter in todays competitive society.  I hope I adapt to the very different college style of taking notes, reading textbooks, and writing papers to do well in my classes. I also hope to absorb the information being taught to me, but most importantly, enjoy the city environment around me that offers such an abundance of great and diverse people, and even better food. My only concern is I hope I control this adventurous want to try new foods and to avoid gaining the “Freshman Fifteen.”

Greetings my fellow LC, Baruch students and faculty, and well, everyone reading this blog.  My name is Alex Boumoussa, I’m 18 years old, and I started Baruch this year as a little freshman, even though no one in the school thinks I’m a freshman.  Beside enjoying long walks on the beach, I also have many other passions, such working on cars, hunting, watching NFL football (The New England Patriots are my favorite team), working out, and meeting new people.  Knowing only 2 people entering Baruch, making new friends and connections is something i have been doing almost every day since I have started here.

Everyone has had events occur in their life that have shaped their values and beliefs.  Though not one specific event comes to mind, my general experiences growing up in a catholic high school, financial plummeting of the U.S. market, and the passings of my grandmother and dog have taught me to be loving and accepting of all people.  To have respect for everyone and not take anything granted because you never know when something you, such as your family and financial security, is going to be taken away in an instant.

My expectations as a college student is to not only make new friends and associates, but to become a better educated person.  I hold education as the foremost important thing in life, for without it it is difficult to earn a good living, help others in your family and community, and be a informed citizens to improve your country.  I know college will equip me the skills I need to succeed in my future.  For my first semester I hope to maintain high grades so I keep my scholarship and to remain a fighter in todays competitive society.  I hope I adapt to the very different college style of taking notes, reading textbooks, and writing papers to do well in my classes. I also hope to absorb the information being taught to me, but most importantly, enjoy the city environment around me that offers such an abundance of great and diverse people, and even better food. My only concern is I hope I control this adventurous want to try new foods and to avoid gaining the “Freshman Fifteen.”

I think the reason why I shut out sound and spend most of my time in my own world is due to all the noise in which I grew up in.  I love New York City. However, I think it’s too much for a person, especially a child. Everyone at a certain point starts to seclude him or herself from this environment, and tries to find peace. This affects everything from health to relationships. I spent high school speed walking my way through crowds at seven in the morning.  I remember how fast my heart was beating, and how hard it was to relax. I have always been walking everywhere alone, taking the train alone, and flying alone.  My dad has gone on a business trip for a month. Therefore, I’m not too scared for this semester because no one has really ever held my hand anyway.  I’m excited to meet people and experience a new environment.  I only hoping to adjust to the elevator and escalator situation. Escalators scare me for an inexplicable reason.

As for my beliefs, I don’t really have any set in stone. I value honesty and acceptance. I gravitate towards people who are confident enough to be open about their feelings. That’s probably because I’m not able to always do that.

One last thing I want to add is that I am concerned with getting home at five. I find myself exhausted by then and I can’t focus as well as I would like to.

Who am I? Where am I from?

Well as you may have heard, I grew up on a farm. Just Kidding. But, I lived a few blocks from a farm most of my life; the closest movie theater was a 30 minute drive, Applebee’s was 20. I didn’t actually mind that lifestyle much though, I got really involved in everything. Yeah, I was that kid in high school. Eagle Scout, FBLA President, Mock Trial Co-Chair, Econ Challenge, etc. I was even a member of the town’s Borough Council.

Some things I’ve done that made me who I am:

• Staffed and eventually directed the Youth Leadership Training Program (teaching hundreds of kids the skills to be strong leaders).
• Travel: Greece, Italy, France, Road-trip to the Gulf of Mexico, alone to Chicago, alone to Orlando.
• Hiked 96 miles across the Appalachian Mountains.
• Eagle Scout, scouting in general
• Started a music production company with hometown friends (since left, but they’re doing alright)
• Moved to New York City!!!

My experiences have taught me many things. Work hard and play hard, because life is short. Keep a positive attitude, and go out of your way to help people, and good things will happen to you. In addition I have learned and reflected upon the words I have been taught to live by–Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean & Reverent.

I expect college to be an exciting adventure. I expect to learn new things I can’t imagine. I expect explore the city that I now call home. I want to break into the world of music and art that this metropolis has to offer.

The only real concerns I have is that I won’t have enough time to do everything I want to do & that the exams are going to be completely different than I expect; but I’m not actually that concerned.

Let’s just rock this city class of 2016!

Who am I? Where am I from?

Well as you may have heard, I grew up on a farm. Just Kidding. But, I lived a few blocks from a farm most of my life; the closest movie theater was a 30 minute drive, Applebee’s was 20. I didn’t actually mind that lifestyle much though, I got really involved in everything. Yeah, I was that kid in high school. Eagle Scout, FBLA President, Mock Trial Co-Chair, Econ Challenge, etc. I was even a member of the town’s Borough Council.

Some things I’ve done that made me who I am:

• Staffed and eventually directed the Youth Leadership Training Program (teaching hundreds of kids the skills to be strong leaders).
• Travel: Greece, Italy, France, Road-trip to the Gulf of Mexico, alone to Chicago, alone to Orlando.
• Hiked 96 miles across the Appalachian Mountains.
• Eagle Scout, scouting in general
• Started a music production company with hometown friends (since left, but they’re doing alright)
• Moved to New York City!!!

My experiences have taught me many things. Work hard and play hard, because life is short. Keep a positive attitude, and go out of your way to help people, and good things will happen to you. In addition I have learned and reflected upon the words I have been taught to live by–Trustworthy, Loyal, Helpful, Friendly, Courteous, Kind, Obedient, Cheerful, Thrifty, Brave, Clean & Reverent.

I expect college to be an exciting adventure. I expect to learn new things I can’t imagine. I expect explore the city that I now call home. I want to break into the world of music and art that this metropolis has to offer.

The only real concerns I have is that I won’t have enough time to do everything I want to do & that the exams are going to be completely different than I expect; but I’m not actually that concerned.

Let’s just rock this city class of 2016!

A few years ago, I was playing basketball in a park with some friends when my father happened to walk by and continued  to watch the game. Afterwards, sitting at home, my dad smiled at me and said, “I saw you play today… and man, you are such a competitor! You never quit!” Now that might have just been my dad trying to make me feel good, but at that moment, I vowed to myself that no matter what I did (whether I was good at it or not), I would be a competitor. I would be passionate and committed to making myself better and stand up to any challenges. For me, nothing brings out that passion more than sports.

One of the hardest challenges in my life was when I dislocated my shoulder and was forced to sit out from playing sports for almost 3 months. That time not playing made me truly realize how much sports means to me. My life revolves around sports. In High School, I was on nearly every athletic team the the school offered, and participated in sports 7 days a week. For me, it didn’t matter whether I never got any playing time on those teams (which happened more than I wanted), or if I played every minute of the game; being on those teams was about bringing out my inner competitor. Playing sports allowed me to push myself, and somewhere in all the blood, sweat, and emotions of the game was an opportunity to show people what I was truly made out of. There was nothing more sweet than the feeling of victory; nothing more painful than the stinging agony of defeat. It was Ezra against the world, and I was not going to lose without a fight.

I will hopefully bring that focused competitiveness and work ethic to Baruch this semester. Besides possibly dying from starvation, I don’t have many concerns regarding my classes. I know most will require my hardest effort, but success is within my reach. I do hope to join some kind of club in the future when I finally figure out this maze of a campus. All in all, I am definitely enjoying Baruch thus far.

A few years ago, I was playing basketball in a park with some friends when my father happened to walk by and continued  to watch the game. Afterwards, sitting at home, my dad smiled at me and said, “I saw you play today… and man, you are such a competitor! You never quit!” Now that might have just been my dad trying to make me feel good, but at that moment, I vowed to myself that no matter what I did (whether I was good at it or not), I would be a competitor. I would be passionate and committed to making myself better and stand up to any challenges. For me, nothing brings out that passion more than sports.

One of the hardest challenges in my life was when I dislocated my shoulder and was forced to sit out from playing sports for almost 3 months. That time not playing made me truly realize how much sports means to me. My life revolves around sports. In High School, I was on nearly every athletic team the the school offered, and participated in sports 7 days a week. For me, it didn’t matter whether I never got any playing time on those teams (which happened more than I wanted), or if I played every minute of the game; being on those teams was about bringing out my inner competitor. Playing sports allowed me to push myself, and somewhere in all the blood, sweat, and emotions of the game was an opportunity to show people what I was truly made out of. There was nothing more sweet than the feeling of victory; nothing more painful than the stinging agony of defeat. It was Ezra against the world, and I was not going to lose without a fight.

I will hopefully bring that focused competitiveness and work ethic to Baruch this semester. Besides possibly dying from starvation, I don’t have many concerns regarding my classes. I know most will require my hardest effort, but success is within my reach. I do hope to join some kind of club in the future when I finally figure out this maze of a campus. All in all, I am definitely enjoying Baruch thus far.

Who am I? Where am I from? Where am I going? The basic answer to these questions is that I am Jonathan Haviv from Queens and Indiana and I am attending Baruch College. In only two hundred fifty words that might be the best answer possible. But I am going to give it a shot, because that is just how I do. Also that’s what the assignment is, so I should probably answer the questions.

I am most recently from Floral Park otherwise known as FloPo. I don’t call it that but I have heard it called that. I went to high school an hour and a half away from my home because I really did not have anything better to do between six and eight in the morning everyday. High school taught me to always look at things in the best light possible and to always have fun. If you don’t then life is going to be tough.

The next importance influence on my life is the rapper Lil B. I discovered him during my junior year of high school and thought his message held a lot of meaning. Although many people believe that Lil B only releases stupid songs as a parody of rap, he actual does stand for something. If you don’t believe me just check out his speech at NYU. He talks about looking at people as more than just their race or appearance but at who they are. I think there needs to be more people who believe in that.

Now that I have given you some background on me, its time to talk about where I am going. Tomorrow I going to class and I’ll see my learning community. They are probably some of the best people I have met so far at Baruch. I don’t really know where I’m going beyond that. I still haven’t chosen my major or what I want to do with my life. I want to play in the NBA one day, and completely believe that I will if I keep practicing. I’m happy to see where life takes me and not to try to tie myself down with too many plans. Wow. I’m starting to sound like a hippie. I wonder when that happened.

Deuces <3

P.S. My blog post title came from a wu tang name generator. Read into that what you will.

Welcome to Blogs@Baruch!

This is your first post. Edit or delete it, then start blogging.