Where I have Been?

When I was a small child instead of real toys and movies my brother and I were given science kits and owl pellets to dissect. We were allowed to have lots of pets, take care of  gardens, and create incredibly ugly art projects.  It wasn’t a particularly exciting childhood, or at least not cinema quality, but I suppose one could argue that it was the nights of rock tumbling and caring for hermit crabs, snapping turtles and snakes that shaped me, at least partially. I give this not to boast or claim a perfect cinematic, cliché indie film of a childhood (which it most definitely was not) but as a disclosure to hopefully explain away my many oddities and flaws.  Though the snake eventually escaped and we all walked a little more cautiously around the basement, I have nothing but fond memories of being little. I read, constantly, and from any book that is nearby. It could be cheesy science fiction, with the cover that only a truly oblivious author would accept, or old fashioned fairy tales, the kind in which rabbit holes are large enough to fall in and the doldrums is a place you pass on your way to Dictionopolis, or even just compilations of “fun facts”. The thing about literature that I love, and consequently the only thing that angry over-protective parents and I agree upon, is the magnitude of the effect that books and authors have on young minds. To this day I am terrified of Ebola Zaire, often finding any number of reasons to diagnose myself with this violent African strain. I hiked the Inca trail to Machu Picchu a year ago and after sixty miles my pinky toe nail fell off. I proceeded to terrify students and teachers alike with vivid imagery on the indicative signs that pointed to the Ebola virus as the culprit. Perhaps one might say that censorship has its place, if only for the sake of other people who have to listen to this absurdity. College was not exactly my first choice, I intended to join the circus, for about two years, and then applied to culinary school. On a whim I submitted the application  to Baruch honors and found myself enrolled this fall, much to the relief of my parents. Therefore my expectations were not fully formed upon arriving to such an institution. I despise inefficiency and much like the Ebola virus intend to work quickly and often  in order to meet whatever end to which college is supposed to bring me.