If you’re like me, you’ve recently filed for your Ohio absentee ballot and are anxiously awaiting its arrival through the mail similarly to that of Santa Claus’ via sleigh ride.

Why?...Because voting is cool – and important! I can prove it.

Take, for instance, you and your two roommates were ordering pizza for the upcoming away football game versus Penn State. One of your roommates wants to order Adriatico’s Pizza while the other wishes to get some gameday grub from Catfish Biff’s. They both look at you with their mouth’s savoring for their favorite pizza pie and ask for you to make the deciding decision – or shall we call it a vote?

That’s right, folks. You’re deciding vote will mean the world to one of your friends and ruin premature tastebuds for the other.

Now, take this theory and place it on a national scale (or even a state or local scale). You may never know when your vote can be the deciding factor for president, governor, mayor, school levy, or amendment. It’s not only a privilege to vote, it’s your civic duty. So, take some time to review the local newspaper and perhaps you can introduce yourself to the friendly elders that work your voting precinct booths – they really are friendly, I don’t lie!

And, when all else fails in your heart, just remember “Vote or Die�….Puffy says so!

Posted by Signal_Caller at 10:54 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I received an interesting phone call today!

My brother had news that he had just purchased a home for him and his soon-to-be wife. I had the opportunity to visit this house over the summer, but I hadn’t expected him to win the bid on it. With two stories plus basement and a three-tiered deck surrounding a hot tub and outdoor pond, expectations to raise a family there are high.

The house itself is in a nice part of town and is approximately twenty minutes from our home – where our whole family has lived since my birth twenty-one years ago! He is expecting the get the keys during the first week of December which means I’ll be heading home for winter break just in time to do some painting and moving of furniture.

I’m excited! It’s definitely a new start for my brother and his fiancé, but I also feel like it’s a new beginning for my entire family. His departure will officially make my parents empty-nesters and will also leave a void in two rooms in our basement (formerly his bedroom/lounge).

He no longer has the opportunity to steal my clothes and stretch them, take my shoes and dirty them, wake me up by jumping on my bed in the a.m., or calling me from his cell phone from the basement to ask me to bring him extra rolls of toilet paper!

Sure, I’ll miss him being around…but I’m happy for my brother. Until they get married, I know I have a nice pad to crash in whenever I head home.

Posted by Signal_Caller at 10:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Apparently over the course of one year I have turned myself into “the wise one�.

OK…Please, stop your laughing.

In all seriousness though, I’ve noticed that many freshmen and sophomores that live on my floor value my opinion and often seek my advice for their own lives.

Be it to settle disputes, offer insight into their personal lives, or simply direct them to the proper resources on campus, the topics that come about in the daily conversations with my fellow Buckeyes have given me somewhat of leverage and nobility in my community.

Because of their faith in me, I feel like I owe it to them to be more of a neighbor than I have in previous years. I find myself staying up later in the evening than usual in order to tap into their personal lives via discussion. And, I’ve noticed that I’m more prone to participating in campus programming and pick-up athletic games as well for the same reasoning.

The thing is, I really can’t think of any one reason for the change in my demeanor. Perhaps, it comes with age? - you know, as a byproduct of wanting to settle down and acquire more responsibility.

The one thing I do know, however, is that I’m definitely struggling in my “coursework� this year as compared to prior years, and I seem to be losing hours of productive time. Yet, at the same time, I’ve never felt more “intelligent� than as I do now. I feel I have a better grasp on interpersonal relationships, a greater working knowledge of my future occupation, and a decided career path I’d like to pursue (both professionally and personally).

So, although others may think of me as “The Great Sage�…or as they call me in Morrill Tower – Gramps – I think I’m just continuing to learn about life.

Posted by Signal_Caller at 5:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Last Thursday, I was awakened by a phone call at 5:10 am by my mother explaining the grave news that my grandfather had passed away just hours before in his sleep. I immediately made arrangements to depart campus for home to attend services and stay through Monday morning. Under the sudden, life altering situation, I never thought twice about what I needed to do: I had to be with my grandmother and the rest of the family.

The news was somewhat expected, but the effect didn’t hit home until the services on Friday and Saturday. There seemed to have been a dark cloud cast on my entire family by Saturday evening – leaving everyone contemplating deeply about their own lives.

Enter Kelly “The Ghost� Pavlik, professional middle-weight boxer.

Kelly, a friend of the family and local hero, was facing the bout of his life as he and incumbent Jermaine Taylor squared off Saturday evening in Atlantic City for the WBC middleweight championship of the world. Both fighters entered the night undefeated, and much ado was made throughout my hometown to rally support for Team Pavlik.

Originally, my brother and his friends had tickets and a night’s stay on the Jersey Shore to witness his friend’s memorable fight; however, due to the urgent family affairs, he had unquestionably stayed home for the services. Nevertheless, by Saturday evening we all needed something to smile about.

Therefore, around 11:00 pm, my family elected to cram into a Youngstown basement along with seven other families to view the fight on HBO. Although miles away from the eastern sea border, one could feel the electricity and excitement via telewire as Kelly – adorned in official OSU Buckeye trunks - entered the ring amidst an ovation of nearly 6,000 Youngstown natives – in a venue that only holds 10,000.

Just as any heroic story ends, the good guy wins. And for us, the good guy was Kelly. A proud son, parent, fighter, and now champion, Kelly was able to produce celebrations clear across the state of Ohio as he proudly - yet humbly - hoisted the championship belt in the air, thanking God and his Youngstown fans for their continued support.

Words are hard to describe how I felt as I watched him celebrate in the ring after his seventh round knockout. On the same day that my family unfortunately buried my grandfather, we were fortunate enough to witness a young man’s life change – for the better – in the blink of an eye. Undoubtedly, his success was solely a result of Kelly’s own blood, sweat, and tears; however, what made that weekend special was his ability to unite a city…or, more specifically, my family…especially when we needed it most.

Perhaps these photographs below – taken by the local newspaper on the day of Kelly's return to the valley – portray the feelings that words cannot convey.

Posted by Signal_Caller at 11:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)