| What is your most memorable childhood experience? | I think my most memorable childhood experience would be from when I was 12 years old. Back then I was doing one of my two childhood forays into sports by racing BMX. I worked really hard at it for a long time and managed to work my way up to making second in state for my age class, which was extremely satisfying. That experience really drove home to me that I can do anything with some hard work and belief in myself. |
| What immediate family member do you closely identify with and why? | I think I most closely identify with my dad. He is a really hardworking guy who sacrificed a lot when I was growing up to make sure that my sister and I had a good life. I really admire how he managed to balance working long hours at the iron works/the dairy (depending on the point in which we're talking) and being a good encouraging dad. I would say we're now good friends as much as we are father and son now that I'm an adult. In general, he is the family member I'm closest to/identify with. |
| What character traits do you admire in an individual? | I think the two traits that stand out to me are empathy and emotional strength. As far as empathy goes, I feel that it's really important to be able to see things from the perspective of those around you. This will ideally enable an individual to be a better person by being a better friend/partner/family member since they can act as an advisor and a shoulder to lean on for others. In terms of emotional strength, I really admire the ability of others to get through intense moments in their lives while maintaining a degree of kindness and poise toward others. |
| What is the funniest thing ever to happen to you? | I think the funniest thing I've ever had happened to me was when I was forced to wear an ill-fitting superman costume as punishment for losing a bet when I was a teenager. We were all going to a concert, and we had a pool for which songs would be played. The person with the least correct songs in the set would have to wear the costume. I ended up losing but given I'm not particularly uncomfortable in situations like that, I made it work for me and now I can bring out a Superman voice and traumatize some of my older friends. |
| If time and money were not an issue, where would you travel and why? | If I had unlimited funds to travel anywhere, I actually think I would take my girlfriend back with me to Poland where I did my bachelor's research. Notwithstanding that the Polish countryside is actually really pretty, I'd really like to go back to the castle and see it again, along with being able to show my girlfriend all the fruits of that period of time I spent overseas in college. There are also some great restaurants in Poznan that I would love to try out again. Polish food by good chefs is something that I love to eat, especially sausages. |
| When and if you ever have children, what would you like to pass on to them? | I think that if I ever have children, I'd like to pass onto them the empathy and intellectual curiosity that I like to think that I have. Education is really important to me, so I would want to make sure that my child has every opportunity possible to succeed and thrive. Then they could hopefully go on to whatever field of study they desire and build a good life for themselves professionally. I would also like to pass down my sense of empathy, which would hopefully set them up for success in their personal endeavors as well as they'd be able to more easily be a good friend and partner to others. |
