Recognition Series: pt. 8 - Michael C

Oddly enough, I have no idea how I met Michael. I know that it was through volleyball, but I have no idea how we started playing together. This was another friend of freshman year. Living on campus meant that all the people around were very accessible and there was a lot of opportunity for social interaction and events like volleyball games and hangouts. Even though I lived on the other side of campus as all the other people that played, I would regularly trek over there to play for 4 or 5 hours at a time.

I had started becoming interested in volleyball my senior year of high school, playing beach volleyball with a lot of the guys on the school varsity team, after I was cut from my final year of baseball. Volleyball, just like ultimate, is a really popular sport among college kids. It's fun, promotes competition, and of course gets you a good tan with all the time you spend outside.

Michael and I grew quite close, and as it turned out he was also from NJ. Despite his completely different major to mine, we still saw each other almost every day, whether from volleyball or meals or something of the like. Summer after freshman year, I actually drove up and stayed at his house for a weekend, and we played volleyball, watched movies, hung out with some of his friends and more. I really enjoyed it thoroughly.

Sophomore year, we still played a ton of volleyball, and ended up playing with huge crowds indoors. So many people would come that we could have three or four full teams -- and still have to rotate people in. It was almost too many people!! Regardless I preferred that than not playing at all. We would always go to Fike (the gym on campus) around 8pm on Wednesday, and it was not unusual for all of us to stay there until midnight when the gym closed.

However, over the years, either people lost interest, or got caught up in schoolwork, or moved off campus so they were less available. Between my study abroad and the amount of schoolwork I had, I didn't play much volleyball anymore, and I miss it. But I'll never forget the guy who really took my "like" of the sport and turned it into a "love."

Michael (or Chick as we called him) and his family moved down to North Carolina, and as far as I know he's got a job now working in Charlotte. Crazy to think that a lot of people are starting the real world now, and I'm still working a summer job because I'm going to graduate school.

Anyway, hope you're enjoying the series thus far. Feel free to let me know what you think in the comments section.