| What is your most memorable childhood experience? | Playing hooky with my parents. It wasn't an event that happened all the time, but every now and again my parents would give me the day off or take me out of school early. My dad taught me how to play pool and chess on our days off, and watch action movie marathons. My mom and I saw movies and tried new restaurants together. One day in particular ended with me and my dad going to our city's new major league ballpark. It was one of the craziest baseball games we have ever seen; with broken bats and bats flying into the crowd and also a grand slam. To top it all off I caught my first foul ball and broke my thumb in the process. Because of the injury, I was able to get the ball signed by a few of the players. |
| What immediate family member do you closely identify with and why? | I have a very close relationship with both of my parents. For the longest time, they were my closest friends because of the moving that we did during my early childhood. In terms of personality, I identify with my father more than my mother, which is why he is one of the only people I have ever idolized. I hope to one day be the family man that he is. |
| What character traits do you admire in an individual? | First and foremost for me is a sense of humor. A sense of humor demonstrates a culmination of other traits such as intellect, open mindedness, wit, etc. Other than humor, loyalty and honesty are important to me. I think that people with a combination of these three traits can befriend anyone and will likely live happy lives. |
| What is the funniest thing ever to happen to you? | I enjoy collecting funny stories. My life is basically made up of them and they range from silly to explicit. One of the funniest stories that I have to tell, however, also happens to be one of the most embarrassing events in my life. The gist of the story is that I took a girl on a first date to a comedy show where people from the crowd volunteer to tell funny stories. The girl I was with put my name into the hat without me knowing and I was chosen to go last. I happen to be an avid public speaker and I love telling funny stories but as it turns out, you can't win every time you get on stage. I ended up bombing so badly that one of the judges asked if I could be given a negative score. It was the most embarrassing date that I had ever been on, but it makes for one funny story. |
| If time and money were not an issue, where would you travel and why? | Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela. For roughly 300 nights out of the year lightning strikes an average of 4,000 times per night. I love lightning storms and rainy weather in general so I would love to visit a place where it is at its most extreme. |
| When and if you ever have children, what would you like to pass on to them? | A deep sense of self. I feel that people who know who they are suddenly stop being a singular thing. By being able to come to terms with one's insecurities, a person can stop being shaped by them. Someone who is comfortable with themselves and who they are can be and do anything they want. If I could pass that down to my children, then hopefully I can help them reach their goals and bring their dreams within reach. |
