Hello. My name is Dylan Larese. I live in Smithtown, Long Island, with my Italian-American family. I have two younger siblings: A brother and a sister.
When it comes to giving speeches in front of an audience, I can humbly say that I lack serious talent! I am much more articulate in writing, and find I can converse more fluently in that way. Nevertheless, I will endeavor to deliver this monologue, as it is required for this course here at Baruch College.
My hobbies include:
Reading both fiction and nonfiction – at the moment I have been immersed in particular varieties of nonfiction.
Listening to music – Jazz, improvisational, blues, fusion, etc. My favorite musician / composer / musical genius is Frank Zappa.
And playing guitar. I can proudly say that I have been a self taught guitarist from the age of 11, courtesy of having very good relative pitch, in musical terms.
An interesting thing about me is that I have had some types of OCD (Obsessive compulsive disorder) since I was about 5 years old. If anyone has watched the television program “Monk,” starring Tony Shaloub, they are familiar with what I am talking about. It has been a difficult hurdle, but fortunately not been insurmountable.
(At this point in the monologue, I will share an anecdote about an OCD / Phobia of mine.)
I decided to study here at Baruch primarily for two reasons: To receive a good education, and to explore and discover NYC. To be honest, I have had mixed feelings about the former. I suppose you could say I was disillusioned by what I had anticipated college at Baruch to be. Unfortunately, I find it to be eerily similar to high school. Freshman students are still lacking freedom (e.g., forced to choose “block class schedules”), and have to comply with a number of arbitrary school rules and regulations. Furthermore, the information presented in the majority of the classes a freshman is enrolled in is largely a rehashing of what he/she already learned years prior in grade school. I set out for college, eager to learn new, exciting, and pertinent information, but have instead been presented an extended version of high school, replete with menial tasks in the classroom.
But perhaps classes will improve next semester. For now, I will give college my best effort and strive for good grades.