When I was a little boy, my parents would take my little sister and I to Lake Ontario every summer for a week.  My aunt and uncle (my dad’s sister) had a house on the lake and were always happy to have us.  My aunt and uncle have seven daughters so at times, it was tight and after a couple years, my parents took to renting another nearby house for the week.

My memories of trips to Lake Ontario vary, but all bring a bright smile to my face.  My uncle owned a liquor store in Syracuse at the time and was known to commute from the lake house to the store every morning to work during the summer.  As a little kid I always woke up early.  It wasn’t rare that I’d wake up early enough to eat breakfast with my uncle before he headed off to work.

I remember one morning specifically where my uncle made himself breakfast.  My Uncle Herbie is a diabetic, so he isn’t supposed to eat much sugar.  My Aunt would always buy him plain corn flakes instead of frosted flakes that he much preferred.  My uncle poured himself a bowl of plain cornflakes, added milk, and then a giant scoop of sugar.  This is just the kind of man he is.  To be fair, added plenty of sugar to mine too.

Lake Ontario also always reminded me of barbecues.  Since there were always so many people at the lake house, it wasn’t uncommon for my uncle or my dad to cook out on the grill.  It was never anything too fancy, just hot dogs and hamburgers and corn.  The corn was some of the freshest and crunchiest I’ve ever had even to this day.  Just to get to my aunt and uncle’s lake house you had to drive past hundreds of fields of fresh corn.  New York white corn was always a tasty summer treat.

Sometimes after dinner we’d head over to an Ice Cream place called Cleo’s.  The weird thing about Cleo’s is that it was connected to a gas station and wasn’t even called Cleo’s.  Years before, it was called Cleo’s and my dad never took to calling it the new name and I don’t think any of us know what it was called at the time.  Cleo’s served giant ice cream cones so it wasn’t too surprising for all of us to order smalls.  The small at Cleo’s is the equivalent of most other place’s large.  I would always order Moose Tracks and if you don’t know what that is, I suggest you look it up or try it (unless you are allergic to peanuts).  I can remember on more than one occasion being piled into the back seat of my mom’s white Ford Windstar.  Years later Cleo’s and the gas station burnt down.

Lake Ontario is also partially where my love for baseball comes from.  Up until 1999, the Cleveland Indians had a Minor League affiliate in nearby Watertown, New York.  One of the necessary trips of every summer was to see the Indians play.  I didn’t really understand baseball at the time, but boy did I love cheering on the Indians.  Somewhere I have a Sean Casey autograph from an Indians game, but I’m not entirely sure where it is today.

One of the other great things to about trips to Lake Ontario was playing with Scruffy.  Scruffy was a stray dog that my Uncle Herbie had saved behind his liquor store one day.  Back in an alley behind his story, my uncle found two kids being cruel to this poor little puppy.  As the story goes, my uncle yelled at the kids and took the dog in.  My uncle at the time was a pretty imposing figure of about 6’2” or so and the family’s dog at the time TJ had recently passed away, so the timing couldn’t have been more perfect.

Scruffy was one of the goofiest dogs I think I’ve ever met.  Whenever I’d go into the lake, it was not out of the question to hear him running after me into the water.  Scruffy wasn’t great at the doggy paddle, so I had to stay shallow to make sure he could “take care of” my little sister and I.  If someone got near us in the water, he’d bark to “protect” us.  Scruffy’s other great skills were digging random holes in the sand, eating anything you put in front of him (I made that mistake once), going through my mother’s luggage and scaring away birds.

We spent at least one July 4^th on the lake.  I can remember sitting with my family watching the fireworks over the lake.  My aunt and uncle’s neighbors were playing with sparklers.  Being only about 7 or 8 years old, I thought they were the coolest things in the world.  Sparklers weren’t legal in New Jersey, so I had never see anything like them.  I can remember for years begging my parents to buy me some on trips into New York City.  They finally broke down once we moved to Atlanta.

I remember so much more about my trips to Lake Ontario, but frankly, I don’t know the right way to tell you.  I remember giant coolers filled with clean drinking water, bunk beds, blue boxes of macaroni and cheese, grandparents, paddleboats, seaweed, fishing trips to Henderson Harbor, an antique typewriter I played with, dominos, card games, and far far too much ice cream to the point that I am at times surprised I still have teeth.

Trips to Lake Ontario were only a small period of time during my childhood, but they stand out to me.  It’s interesting to thing about how my trips up to the lake house made my life the way it is.  We’ve all had our own trips to the lake house, or down the shore, or wherever our favorite family vacation place was and I think it is important to remember these stories.  They tell about who we are and where we came from more than a resume or a passport.  Are stories are our lives and tell where we came from like the rings on the inside a tree.

The first part of this conversation is about transportation.  Today, we live in a city that is neither bicycle nor skateboard friendly.  Our city has incredibly limiting skateboarding ordinances and lacks the necessary bicycle lanes to support the growing cycling community.  Cyclists seem forgotten, like the stepchild of motorists.  What we all need to remember is that roads were not designed for just cars.  We must educate each other to share the roads.  We are all looking to get from point A to point B and do it safely.  From this, along with members of the community I have established a Cycling Safety Committee where we are looking for ways to educate students at the College to ride their bicycles safely.

I’d like to thank you for taking the time to read this and hope you check back for further information as our conversation continues.

Ross Kressel, President of the Student Body

This so far has been a hard year to watch baseball in.  I am watching the end of an ERA like I said before.  Jorge spent some time hitting below the Mendoza line (YUCK!).  Life as a DH must not be easy.  What still amazes me is how Mariano Rivera just doesn’t seem to ever age.  Rivera’s has blown a couple saves this year, sure, but he is still one of if not the sharpest closer in the game.

As much as I know baseball is made just to entertain us (or at least that is how I’ve always seen it before), it is a new reminder that I am growing up.  Over are the days of playing in the park, swim listens, camp, and simplicity.  It seems the older we get, the more complicate things seem to be getting.  I sometimes struggle with the fact that I am 21 and the expectation is for me to be an adult, but have none of the real freedom of an adult.  I want to keep moving forward, but also stay behind.  It is a strange sort of struggle that I guess is part of the quarter-life crisis (yes, that exists).

I guess what I’m trying to say is I am ready to grow up.  I know being an adult (what exactly is that?) isn’t going to be easy, but I have to do it.  Come the end of next May, I will walk across the Cistern and either get ready to start a job or graduate school.  Both ideas are scary, but also exciting.  As much as the idea of growing up is scary to me, the adventures it will bring will certainly reward me.

Derek Jeter

Jorge Posada

Mariano Rivera

The only three left from the Yankees teams of my childhood.  Looking back at the 1998 roster, I see a lot of names that used to make me smile when I watched them take the field.  I think of Chuck Knoblauch playing second until the yips led to an end to his time as an infielder as he  found himself playing left field.  The most memorable thing about him to me though wasn’t the yips or steroids, but watching him bat.  Knoblauch had one of the strangest batting stances of any player I can remember.  Sadly I couldn’t find any video or photos of his batting moving in the air, but it is something I will always remember.  I guess it didn’t make much difference how weird his stance was, because he was doing what was important, hitting.

Bernie Williams probably was at the time and may always be my favorite New York Yankee of all time.  Bernie always looked so cool and collected holding the bat.  I remember reading about the Yankees considering trying to trade away Bernie for Albert Belle.  I don’t think anything in sports would have made me more upset.  Today I wish the Yankees had given him a better send off than they did.  They gave him a spring training invitation but didn’t guarantee him a roster spot.  Heck of a way to thank someone who helped you win three world series in a row huh, but mores discussion about that will have to be in another entry.

I remember reading about Orlando Hernandez (you probably know him as El Duque) in a book at a mall bookstore in Livingston, New Jersey.  What most people remember about El Duque is the leg kick (see 3:44).  Probably the most interesting thing about El Duque is his age, as different sources have him listed as having been born in 1969 and 1966 respectively.  My dad used to joke that El Duque was probably eligible for social security.

Although he was never a player I really liked, I would be remiss to not mention Shane Spencer.  1998 was the year that Shane broke out, I mean the guy hit 10 homers in 27 games. It’s a real shame he couldn’t hit a curveball.

As much as I am sad to see the generation of baseball players I watched and admired growing up ride off into the sunset, for a lot of them it is time.  The next generation of ball players will mean something special to another eight year old as he watches Robinson Cano help start a double play or Ryan Howard smack the ball out of the park.

I guess what I mean to say by this is that I am running for Student Body President because I want to see people experience a College of Charleston better than the one that I have already enjoyed.  The College has given so much to me and the Presidency is the way that I seek to give back to the students, faculty, and staff who have made my time at the College such a pleasure.  I think together, we as a College community can do so much to make the College a better and safer place to learn, but I need your help.  Without being elected, I can’t serve you, so I am challenging you again to head to the polls on Wednesday between 8 AM and 5 PM and to cast your vote for the candidate who above all wants to make the College of Charleston the best it can possibly.  Let’s get started.  Below are instructions on how to vote:

1. Go to https://my.cofc.edu/cp/home/displaylogin and log on to My Charleston.
2. Next click on the Student Services Tab.
3. In the center of the Student Services Tab click on SGA Election System.
4. Then click on Spring 2011 Runoff election
5. Select Your Candidates
6. Remember to click submit once you have made your selections

Thank you for voting!

Sincerely,

Ross

During my time at the College, I have made a huge effort to be involved in different activities around the College.  Throughout my time at the College, during one time or another I have been involved with the CofC Academic Team, Americans for Informed Democracy, College Republicans, College Democrats, Alliance for Planet Earth, the Gay Straight Alliance, the Jewish Student Union, and many other student organizations.  When the office of admissions calls on volunteers to be involved in events for accepted students, I always volunteer to make sure incoming students feel welcome at the College.  This year I volunteered at accepted students weekend for the third year.

I connect with students a lot of the time by wearing a hat that isn’t quite as familiar to the student body as my hat as Vice President of the Student Body or the other hats in Student Government I have worn before,  I wear my orientation intern hat.  As an orientation intern I talk and connect with new students to make sure their wants and needs are being met as they prepare to be students at the College and as much as I am wearing my hat as an orientation intern, I consider how our Student Government Association can help their dreams as College students come true.

When the Student Government Association holds events, I rarely if ever miss them.  I am always happy to talk to the students that I am lucky enough to serve.  When the Student Government Association served at Liberty during the fall semester, I walked around Liberty talking to students asking what the Student Government Association could do for them, taking diligent notes and relaying these to our Executive Council and Executive Board.  My phone number, several email addresses, Twitter, and my Facebook are accessible.  I am not a hard guy to get ahold of and I look for opportunities to make sure that things are going well.

I can proudly say that I connect with our student body and I love walking around and talking to the students here at the College.  The College is here for the students to get an education, both inside and outside the classroom and I strive everyday to make sure that is a possibility for all of us.

Remember, you have until 6 PM tonight to vote and here is how you do it:

1. Go to https://my.cofc.edu/cp/home/displaylogin and log on to My Charleston.
2. Next click on the Student Services Tab.
3. In the center of the Student Services Tab click on SGA Election System.
4. Then click on Spring Elections 2011.
5. Select Your Candidates
6. Remember to click submit once you have made your selections

1. Go to https://my.cofc.edu/cp/home/displaylogin and log on to My Charleston.
2. Next click on the Student Services Tab.
3. In the center of the Student Services Tab click on SGA Election System.
4. Then click on Spring Elections 2011.
5. Select Your Candidates
6. Remember to click submit once you have made your selections

I wanted to thank you for following my campaign and being engaged in campus politics.  It is you the voters and my constituents who will decide who will lead the College of Charleston and I hope to be that person.

1. Let’s have a conversation-What did I mean by let’s have a conversation?  My goal was to be transparent and that is exactly what I was.  I worked to create a new Student Government Association website with more content than our previous one and re-developed the previous one into a blog.  Together, these added more information than ever before available online about what we do.  Our blog has been used to make sure that every week legislation is available as well as for press releases and the Student Organization budgets.  This year, for the first time ever, SGA had a town hall meeting in the semester opposite of our traditional state of the student body.  If elected President I would like to make a fall town hall a tradition of the Student Government Association so the student body knows what we as their representatives are doing.  Comment on here if you have more ideas on how we can become more transparent.
2. Let’s get stuff done-I had to censor this one the first time, because originally I had a different word instead of stuff.  I work tirelessly for the students I represent.  If there is a meeting where the student body needs to be represented, either I will be there or I will make sure a student is there.  Students should be involved in all decisions made at the College, I mean the place is here for us to learn right?  I will not stop working for you, the students until the job is done.  It is fairly typical for me to get home from the office after 9 PM after a full schedule of classes.  If you’ve ever heard me complain about this, I have a secret (well, not so much a secret as a statement to tell you): I LOVE what I do.  I love waking up in the morning not knowing what I will get to do for the students I work for.  One day I could be answering emails to students, while another I could be working on the SGA website, presiding over senate, meeting with one of the various committees I serve on.  I nothing more than answering that text message from a student who wants to know how to start a student organization, apply for contingency, or even become a senator in SGA.

This might seem like some long drawn out blog, but in reality what I am trying to tell you is about my character.  I will tell you the truth about things, but I expect the same of those around me.  I expect details, plans, and strategy.  Thank you so much for reading my blog and following me on my campaign path.  Remember voting starts on Wednesday March 30th at 8 AM on MyCharleston and will go until Thursday March 31st at 5 PM with preliminary results coming out at 7 PM Thursday.