Orientation- Part 3 (Roughing It)

Well, it is now late. I needed to take care of some other business (believe it or not for the first day). Now that I am back, I can brief you on a cool little hike I took. Last year, I directed people to the events as a Adventure Activities coordinator. This year, I traveled with the Hiking group to Delaware State Park. My immediate instinct was to take as many pictures as plausible. I wondered if any of my Geography professors went to conduct their research here. I am bound to find out sooner or later. Well, take a look at some of these pictures I took. This is kind of nerdy but I find the environment.

We traveled at least three miles into the woods whole trip. We were on the Mink Run Trail most of the way.

The lonely road that we crossed. I like lonely roads. Good to run across them or on them for cross country or just plain fun.

The incoming freshman who are participating in this hike. There was a lot more of them than shown here.

Student leaders John Kirsop and Julia Blyth.

This is me from three different views.

The view is good. Too bad I could not get a better view without the foliage in the way. Oh well, nature at its best.

I think you get the point. This was the main point of interest on Sunday besides buying books and filling out paperwork for Orientation Leaders. I guess that wraps up my second stint as an Orientation Leader. I hope you had fun reading the vast amount of information I provided about my experience as an Orientation Leader. I have to get ready for three classes tomorrow so I will be heading to bed in the next thirty minutes or so.

Preparing for a torrential storm of knowledge and expensive books,

Hasani Wheat

Class of '10

Orientation- Part 2

This is a continuation of the Orientation blog I wrote earlier since there is so much I wanted to write about it and I didn't to bog you down with everything I did in one blog. On Thursday after Convocation, I helped to set up and tear down Recycled Percussion. I needed my muscles to help me complete the task. Stairs, boxes of equipment, speakers, etc. There are other things I did in the next day that I will personally with you in the spirit of Orientation.

The performance by Recycled Percussion was awesome. Too bad a lot of the Orientation Leader were so tired that they slept through a majority of it (or so I heard). I was wide awoke and I seized the opportunity to be a part of the group that felt the power of the drums, guitar riffs, and other spectacular percussion in the mix. Of course, most of the instruments were not actually instruments, rather they were household appliances used to create a similar but unique sound. Realizing this was pretty cool. They were not the average rock band by any means.

The drummer was amazing. Seeing evidence that he could actually hit a drum twenty times a second was astonishing. The group did a lot of improvization. They did that so well that if they made a mistake (which was a couple like throwing drumsticks high in the air to catch them and missing), the adrenaline and the flow of what they were doing would be so intense that you did not think it was a mistake, that it was a part of the show (which it was, technically). Anyway, Recycled Percussion is awesome and you should get their DVD.

Fireworks? No. This is a demonstration of sparks flying from the sawdrill they were using. Nice, isn't it?

The night ended for Recycled Percussion when we tore down the entire huge set. That was fun. I needed a ton of muscle strength to do it. At the very end of the night, I ended up loading everything in the truck. This is where I took the picture. The camera was fogged up as you may tell. Still, I had a ton of fun at the concert and using team skills to complete the task.

The day before, I went over to the International House. The Moderator, Jeane Pham, invited me over. Originally, I was over to visit a friend who was moving in. When I came back over around 8 pm, there was so many International students on the 1st floor that we had to move outside to continue introductions, name games, etc. Eventually, we all moved back to the Internation House for board games like Taboo and Apples to Apples. This was a fun experience and I got to meet more 1st year International students in this one instance. Sweet! To the left is a picture of Resident Assistant Samantha Spiridellis enjoying the festivities.

Friday night. Almost there. Casino night with pizza tasting. Yummy. At least ten pizza places donated pizza to the event. Some were better than others (I am not naming them.)

Freshmen and returning students gather in the middle of the room where the slots were located.

I still don't believe it. The Soulja Boy dance is still that popular. I thought this was just a fad. People are still doing that dance. Wow.

And the madness continues. Lucas Bezerra demonstrates his moves for the camera.

Saturday afternoon. A special treat. Guess whose house Orientation Leaders and incoming freshmen were invited to?

If you said the Pritchard House, you are correct.

If you think for one second, you will realize the significance of this. This is President Rock Jones personal house. The President invited students to his house? Wow. I never would have fathomed that in a long time. Maybe after I have graduated but certainly not now in my 3rd year. The Pritchard House was forbidden for a while. A change has come indeed. Glad to see it. The burrito bar was awesome. The conversations were good. The weather was perfect. A perfect event to kick off the year for the students.

Almost done with Orientation for the blogs,

Hasani Wheat

Class of '10

Orientation- Part 1

I am back on campus, people. I survived the beginning of my first two classes of the year and I still have about five to go. I am done with Orientation and I finally have some time to put pictures on the blog. I think I have been going through some hardcore, intensive training with this Orientation and I would like to share some highlights with you of my experience in the last week. I arrived on campus last Saturday and finished Orientation on Sunday, which leads into Bishop Week this week. Since my Orientation experience was a week long, I went kind of crazy on the pictures. That is why you will be seeing this blog in three parts. The first part deals with the actual training portion of the trip. The second part deals with the actual Orientation. The third part deals with the adventure activity that I did- hiking. Without further ado, I introduce to you my experience as an Orientation Leader in pictures.

Delaware, Ohio. Home of my college, Ohio Wesleyan University. A lovely place, really. You just have to give it some time for it to sink in. I miss the streets housing the Small Living Units. Unique places that is a huge part of the campus community.

First day of Orientation. We got to know each other slowly and carefully. We did a lot of role-playing. Here you can see three of the Orientation Leaders acting out a skit about two incompatible roommates and their Resident Assistant. Funny stuff.

Here is another example of role-playing. I do not recall the situation with this one but the role-playing was interesting, to say the least.

Eazzy clean. Yes, this is a college laundry service. It is relevant to me though because all of my laundry is in my board plan. I was happy to hear that the laundry service was available to other people who may be less fortunate.

Day three was packed with adventure and excitement. The Orientation Leaders went to Recreation Unlimited, which is about 10 miles of Delaware. I didn't know what to expect when I first arrived. There was a lot of open, empty space. I realized that we had to hike into the woods for some of our more risky events. The trust fall and the squeeze box were more of the risky events. This is a sign I took of the occasions that the area is used for. Pretty eclectic, huh.

See what I mean? At first, there was nothing but empty spaces which we walked to. It got interesting after lunch and a game of 5-on-5 basketball.

Stream Trail were everywhere. I knew that we would be doing some hiking. That is one of the many reasons why our Orientation Team Leaders had us sign forms and provide medical information. This is one of the many trails you would find around the huge park area.

More space, wide and open for us to play on.

I saw this contraption near the end of the day at Recreation Unlimited. This is the high ropes course. Looks pretty intimidated. Of course! I have gone a contraption like that before with the tightrope walking and the zipline. Boy, what was fun.

A Picture of the Nature Trails Greeting near the woods.

Gotta look that up for more information.

Long story short, I was blindfolded for a game that required me to think without using my eyes. I had one hand in between a person's legs and one hand in between my own and there were hoops I had to navigate blindfolded. Team work, the best thing a fellow human can do for itself to survive. We did it.

Twelve foot wall. Nice touch to the end of our excursion to Recreation Unlimited. Everyone did the eight foot wall. I climbed up that easily. The twelve foot with a little help by the guys hoisting was also pretty easy. A wall in my way is nothing for me. Bring it!

The start of a very, very long night. Recycled Percussion was on campus at the beginning of the Orientation ceremonies on Thursday. Not a pleasant experience for people because of the heavy and constant lifting of awkward items and things of that nature. I did not go to bed until about 2 am the next day. It was all worth it just like the Demetri Martin show. The President of CPB, Griffin Waterman and Entertainment/Social Coordinator, Eric Wise, lend a hand to lifting an awkward piece of steel steps. Wrestlers must be in a world of hurt after getting with that big thing.

The night of Convocation was a success and Recycled Percussion was awesome as well.

To be continued,

Hasani Wheat

Class of '10

Last Friday excursion before heading back

This is the last week to splurge and enjoy the numerous places to shop before I go back to small town Delaware. I have a lot to do work-wise before I go back so I better keep up with the progress I am making. For my last excursion, I decided to stay close to the work area and go to Beachwood Mall. I have not shopped at Beachwood Mall since July of last year so I figured I was overdue. I knew that I could not buy anything exquisite like I did last year but I had some money mainly because I just got paid about a week ago. I had fun and spent that "me" time I really needed.

I toured Beachwood Mall and went in a couple of stores after taking out some additional money from my bank nearby. I headed across the way to Eddie Bauer, which is one of my favorite places to shop. It is the only one around and I like the fabric and the look of the clothing. It is chic but professional. It is also one of the places that I know I can afford as a working college student who constantly needs to update his look for work and events on campus where it is not okay to come in and wear jeans and a wife beater. I got a shirt for a sales price of 19.99 and two pairs of dress socks for 2.99 each. I was so stoked.

Still in the mall, I went to a couple of sunglass places to compare prices. I like a good pair of sunglasses just like the next person but for now, I opted not to purchase Ray-Bans. In my price range but I am reserving my money for books, dues, and tuition. I was stopped by this one salesmen who wanted me to purchase some cleansing stuff for the hands that he claimed was from the Dead Sea. The mineral salt felt good as I tried it out on my hands but I was not going to spend $180 for the stuff. The salesmen tried to hustle me by negotiating with the price. I was strong and had to refuse it using the excuse of being the poor, broke college student that had $10 on him. People: don't you detest those kind of salesmen. I should know: I worked for CUTCO and went door-to-door by bus for the summer after my senior year of high school. Never will I do that again unless it is a dire, life-threatening emergency on my part.

After wondering around the mall, I left Beachwood Mall to go to a smaller place, called La Place. I usually cut through on my way to Legacy Village but this time, I decided to stay in the shopping mini-mall. Some of the other interns were talking about going to a restaurant called Sushi Rock since we went to Otani's in Mayfield Heights during the lunch break. Well, I decided to try it. I knew that it would be quite expensive (what place in Beachwood, Ohio is not expensive?) so I would have to throw down in two senses- the eating sense and the money sense. The food better be good.

The ambience was place and I got to sit on the outside patio watching the sun begin to set, getting a glimpse of the John Edwards sex scandal (why did we vote for this guy as the VP candidate in our Mock Convention? I knew Edwards had something up his sleeve or in another area), and seeing countless customers come and go. I heard the food was good. My verdict: the good was unique and tasty. I decided to go all out and get the most expensive dish on the list. The meal: Filet Mignon (again, you ask?) and lobster tails. Okay. The lobster tails are not ordinary. The lobster tails were diced up and wrapped in sushi. I was skeptical at first but I had tried lobster and shrimp quesadillas at Lopez's in Cleveland Heights a couple of weeks before and it was pretty decent for a meal. The meal is picture above this text and you can judge for yourself. To me, the food went down without a hitch and I was actually quite full after the meal. Sushi Rock was a success and the $40 I paid for the meal was absolutely worth it. I know how to pick the restaurants and the meal.

Next up?? Hopefully I will be able to come back to Cleveland in a couple of weeks and detail you on the Taste of Cleveland, one of the most orgiastic food festivals I have ever been around (if you got the appetite and the money to spend). Of course, I love it. I am not a fast eater but I can definitely put down some food. I detest wasting food because that is wasting money. So that is why I like food so much and almost always eat everything. Hopefully, I can convince some people to go with me to experience the Taste of Cleveland. Maybe I will take some Circle K people or BMF people or some Phi Delts with me. Only time will tell.





Loving enjoying these "last meals",
Hasani Wheat
Class of '10