Author Archives: plr59

Recapping Nostalgia with the CU Wind Symphony

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On Saturday, November 17th, I attended the CU Wind Symphony concert. I chose to attend this concert when I first saw a flyer advertising the program about a few weeks ago. A particular piece struck out to me — ” The Symphonic Dances of West Side Story”, originally written by Leonard Bernstein and transcribed by Paul Lavender. I had played this piece of music during my senior year of high school in my wind ensemble. This piece was by far the most musically challenging piece I had ever worked on in my life. Running a course of over 20 minutes, this piece took a lot of endurance and technicality that could not be matched. Despite the difficulty, it was definitely my most favorite piece of music that I had ever played.

In high school, I was heavily involved in the music program, which was boasted as being one of the strongest high school performing arts programs in New York City. I played a total of 5 instruments — the euphonium, tuba, trombone, french horn, and trombone. I was in the wind ensemble for all four years of high school, the marching band during my sophomore and junior years, and the jazz band during my junior year. My instructors were very tough and they pushed us to the best we could be; most of us regarded our band classes as the hardest classes, even harder than AP or college-level academic classes.

“The Symphonic Dances of West Side Story” means a lot to me because it resembles the culmination of my extraneous high school music career. It was the last song we had played during our high school graduation. The piece itself encompassed so many different styles of music and kept me on edge for the entire duration. Hearing the CU Wind Symphony perform this piece was a real treat for me. I had never expected to hear this piece again after playing the final note during my high school graduation. Every section, phrase, measure, and note took me back to when I had performed it during high school and brought me back to a much simpler time. I would like to thank the CU Wind Symphony for giving me that experience. And although I am not currently involved in any music groups on campus this semester, I may look forward to auditioning to the CU Wind Symphony in the future.

Attempting to Get Rid of My Interview Phobia

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I attended GRF Seema’s seminar on interview preparation hoping to learn some new tips to relieve my anxiety when it comes to interviews. I, like most people, do not look forward to interviews at all because of the pressure that every question puts on me. I have trouble thinking of answers on the spot and it is extremely difficult to try and cater my responses to what the interviewer would look positively on. Over the past few years, I’ve gone rounds of interviews for college selection, job application, and internship possibilities. Through each and every interview, I’ve learned at least one thing that I could work on for the next interview. And although my fear of interviews has not gotten that much better over the years, I would like to think that my overall performance is significantly stronger over the recent interviews than the first.

I had reflected on a couple of interviews that I had been on and applied GRF Seema’s ideas with my past experiences. My first ever interview was about 3 years ago during my junior year of high school. The interview was going relatively well until the interviewer had asked me a question that I simply blanked on. I could not think of an answer and there was an awkward silence for about a minute and it was the most excruciating silence ever. After I had given an offhand response, my morale had sunk. I believed that the interview had ended at that moment and it was obvious to the interviewer with my change of attitude. GRF Seema told us to not think so hard about the mistakes that we make during an interview. Perhaps if I had ignored the mistake totally after the question had passed, the interview may have gone so much better.

A more recent interview I had gone was during the last summer for a highly intensive and competitive marketing internship in New York City. The process was composed of three interviews with the first and third being relatively short and straight to the point. The second interview was an extremely tough challenge, with the interviewer asking us questions tailored to critical thinking in the marketing world while completing certain tasks. Coming from a very weak background in marketing, the interview pushed me to my limits. The interview lasted about six hours and had a lot of downtime in between. I made sure to leave a good impression with my interviewer and keep casual conversation to let him know that I am personable, a trait extremely important in marketing. GRF Seema emphasized to keep a certain professional and casual relationship with the interviewer depending on the situation. I recalled my second interview during this and will know to keep this strategy going on in the future.

Is Kneeling a Violent Crime Now?

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During last week’s cafe, I had the pleasure of listening to Professor Angela Cornell speak about a very important issue. Prior to this talk, I’ve had very little knowledge about the debacle with Colin Kaepernick. I’ve had the general idea that Kaepernick had knelt during the National Anthem to protest injustices and that he had received a lot of backlash for it. But Professor Angela’s talk went more in-depth with the issue and the consequences of this one football player’s actions.

Professor Angela’s talk was very insightful because we talked about the issue arguing on both sides rather than just focusing on Kaepernick’s perspective. While many of us that attended seemingly supported Kaepernick’s action, Professor Cornell challenged us to think of an argument against Kaepernick’s actions. I had never viewed the issue in this way and it allowed me to get a grasp of the issue as a whole rather than the tunnel vision perspective that I had. Previously, I fully supported Kaepernick’s actions to protest and believed he had every right to do so. However, now I understand those that felt his actions were too much. As we’ve discussed, Kaepernick’s decision to protest while working in the private sector proved very detrimental to his case. Kaepernick’s decision to kneel while on the job could be compared to a professor protesting or speaking against his/her views during a lecture; I would not want to hear such protest while the professor is on the job. Kaepernick had no legal right to protest because his first amendment rights would be limited while on the job. However, many were against him because they viewed his action as a violent crime. I personally do not think Kaepernick caused any harm to others by choosing to protest during the National Anthem. Many would argue that there were more efficient, less controversial ways to protest and express his views. But Kaepernick was placed on spotlight during the football game and had the most impact by kneeling during this very specific time. This decision was the reason that we’re still talking about the issue and why it’s the most effective way to protest because it starts the conversation for change.

Get Out Your Ballots and Vote!

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I attended the cafe by Professor Altschuler and this talk was definitely an eye-opener. While attending Cornell, I have been pressured to register and vote this entire semester because of the importance to satisfy our national duty. I’ve never experienced this sort of demand of people wanting to vote because, during the last midterm and primary elections, I was only in high school where none of us were allowed to vote. I was a little nervous before coming to this cafe talk because I consider myself to have very limited knowledge in the state of our government today and the political environment as a whole. I’ve never been into the politics of American government just because I had always had the notion that the government’s actions won’t have a personal impact on me. Of course, this is not true at all and this same notion is the reason why we have such a low voter turnout rate in the United States. Despite the severe advancements in technology within the recent twenty years, many still chose not to vote or even register to vote because of inconveniences. Altschuler mentioned a lot about polling metrics and why that isn’t an effective indicator of voting behaviors. I thought this was an important issue because many chose not to vote because they look at polling outcomes prior to voting. However, there is many biases with polling and the lack of accurate polling mechanisms diminish the credibility of these results. Therefore, each vote does make a difference in the elections and people should vote on the account of making an actual difference in electing those into office. Despite my prior lack of interest in the government, I will still represent my beliefs in voting for someone that I believe is best fit for the position.

Cider, Donuts, and Pie (Oh My!)

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Attending Apple Fest was an immersive experience into one of Ithaca’s grandest traditions. Coming from the really urban city of Staten Island, I’ve never experienced the close vibes of a small town such as Ithaca. Although my town has traditions such as our St. Patrick’s Day Parade, the atmosphere doesn’t really match that of something such as Apple Fest. Apple Fest is a unique tradition special to Ithaca, taking advantage of our love for agriculture and apples. Focusing on this theme, we were engulfed by all things apples, such as apple cider, cider donuts, apple pie, etc. I had expected this festival to only include foods surrounding this theme, but I was gladly mistaken when I was exposed to so many different foods of different cultures. One of the first stands I went to was an Indian food stand. I had a wonderful conversation with the man running the stand and got food that reminded me of a home-made meal by my mother. I was able to have so many conversations with the locals of Ithaca and learn more about the town behind our college. Apple Fest was a wonderful experience for me because it was the well-deserved break needed during the middle of prelims.

 

Keep Your Friends Close And Your Networkees Closer

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As a student at Cornell, sometimes it’s okay to feel overwhelmed by the numerous number of advisors that is available. Personally, I have a faculty advisor, advising dean, pre-health advisor, major advisor, Professor Avery as a house professor, and several other mentors that I feel comfortable with sharing my doubts and concerns about anything. Building these connections is essential for a positive future in the workforce. Although I’ve heard from many different sources about the importance of networking, I’ve never really understood how significant it was until this cafe talk. Networking provides me with so many possible opportunities that I wouldn’t have known even existing. Keeping in contact with a group of professionals that are both my peers and contemporaries gives me a diverse collection of people that could drive my career path forward. I now know how important it is to attend office hours and make these connections with my professors and TAs. Although I’ve had a bad experience going to a professor’s office hours, I know that most faculty at Cornell often seek to aid their students rather than hinder their educational experience. I will push myself to extend myself towards these faculty members and make these connections and networks that will help my future.

A Big Break with Entrepreneurship: Is the Risk Worth It?

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The chance to listen to Peter Cortle’s talk about entrepreneurship was an extremely thought-provoking experience, and I was very grateful to be able to listen to his wisdom in this exciting field. I walked into this talk with very little intentions of delving into entrepreneurship in my life and was set on my path to go to medical school. Medical school would be a fixed path for me, and I would have little need to diverge from this path and be left on my own. Entrepreneurship is the complete opposite; many fresh entrepreneurs are left to fend for themselves and go on an unknown journey of fulfilling an inner passion. I am a very structured person because I would preferably be directed towards a path rather than figure it out myself. With such personality, entrepreneurship had never crossed my mind because I would never expect that I could design and launch a business from scratch. However, Mr. Cortle’s talk had convinced me otherwise. The fact that he started his own business while in the same position as I am right now (a sophomore at Cornell University) convinced me to believe that entrepreneurship is not as scary as it may seem. Cortle’s extensive use of resources that helped further his ventures was the foundation for his success, and I believe that it is because he thought that he was not alone. I learned that being an entrepreneur is not just having a life-changing idea that would transform society, but rather a drive to go beyond society’s standards and improve some aspect of someone’s life for the better. While I do still intend to go to medical school, there may be a chance in the future that I could use my mathematics degree to delve into the field of entrepreneurship. Thus, I left this talk with a sense of optimism and courage to improve the world around me.