SLANT NU
CONTRIBUTORS
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What encounter have you had that was memorable, yet spontaneous?
Caroline Brown
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Caroline (known as CJB) is a senior English Literature Major with a Spanish Minor. When she’s not surfing, writing, or hanging out with her cat Ponce de Leon, she’s philosophizing about life, spreading good vibes, or drawing for her webcomic tiny sharks.
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I think my most memorable encounter recently was on a trip with my friends during spring break. We drove all of the way to Portland from Chicago, stopping at various locations along the way. At one of the national parks we visited, Canyonlands, my friend Alistair and I got out of the car and were walking to the visitor center when someone called, “Caroline!?” I turned and saw three friends from my high school, who happened to be walking up to the visitor’s center at the exact same moment! I had no idea they would be there! I’m from a rural town in WI where we only had 200 kids in the high school so it was a very rare occurrence to run into them, especially so many miles away from our hometown! They were only stopping in to fill up their water containers, so if we had arrived a few minutes before or after them, we wouldn’t have seen them at all! It was definitely a fated moment.
Simon Choi
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Simon is a senior studying Psychology and Cognitive Science. He was born in New Jersey but spent the majority of his formative years in Korea and Massachusetts. After graduation, he hopes to pursue a career in clinical psychology. When he’s not doing research at the lab, Simon enjoys browsing SoundCloud, meditating, engaging in conversations about metaphysics, and playing basketball because ball is life.
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I went to an Autograf concert in Los Angeles, and before the concert started, my friend and I decided to go up to a terrace in the concert building. We met a guy who offered my friend a cigarette and had a brief conversation with him. Soon enough, the guy said he had to leave. We went back downstairs to see the same guy performing as Autograf. My friend’s cigarette tasted that much better in hindsight.
Kate Camarata
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Bienen Senior at NU 2016, currently working in the 'real world,' whatever that means. I use Drake references and Mean Girl quotes on a regular basis. After revising this bio for a hour in an attempt to seem funny and witty, I gave up.
HUGE shout-out to the amazing SLANT team, I love so much. It was a great opportunity to be on the contributing side this time.
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Before starting NU, I went to Coachella and screamed out GO CATS during Andrew Bird's set and he totally heard me and said, "wait what? Do we have a wildcat in the room?" and then he continued with the next song, but that was a really proud moment for me. In retrospect, I'll never utter those words again...
Jessica Fang
Jess is a soon to be Communication Studies grad hailed from the sunny Southern California. Besides flip flops and beach days, she loves R&B music, sharks, and comedies. You’d either find her out in the sun enjoying a nice cold beer or exploring the city of Chicago. She doesn’t really know where she’s going to be after Northwestern, but she knows for sure that she’ll always be drawing and on the hunt for adventure.
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My whole piece answers the question.
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Tarushi Sharma
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Tarushi Sharma is a freshman who is currently a pre-med student but hopes to eventually major in creative writing-- and find a sustainable balance between the two. Though half her life was spent between Houston and Boston, she left her heart in the quiet Himalayan mountains where she was born. When not daydreaming about the future or reminiscing about the past, she loves to aggressively read, ride her bike, and spend all time possible near the lake.
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This past winter vacation I went on a cruise that had a port stop in Belize. When I finally escaped the commercialized tourist area, I found myself lost in a rather run down part of downtown Belize City. While trying to find my way back to the port I heard people drumming from beneath the bridge I was on. On a whim, I decided to check it out and found myself in a rickety old instrument shop run by an old man and and his wife. The shop was called “Drums not Guns”, and the old man convinced me to take a seat in their shop. He then taught me a beat to repeat on a conga, and then him, his wife, and a young homeless child added to the beat with different instruments. We played together in this manner for fifteen minutes, and a small crowd collected underneath the bridge. After giving me directions back to the port, they gave me a mini homemade drum, told me to spread the message of “drums not guns” back home, and to like their page on Facebook.
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Rebecca Liu
Rebecca is a junior from South Bend, IN studying Economics.
Likes: thunderstorms, romantic comedies, transportation, Millennials
Dislikes: spiders, winter, aloofness, Millennials
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Once, after running a 5K in Chicago, there was a post-race breakfast at a nearby restaurant. I figured the most logical way to get there was to go with someone else who had driven to the race. I picked an innocuous looking older couple and hopped a ride with them. Although they were a little wary of me initially, I warmed them up and had a great conversation with them over a delicious breakfast.
Sharon Wei
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Personally, I hate biographies. Limiting a person to a small paragraph when they’re filled with wonderful waterfalls, roaring rapids, straining steams of emotion and experiences is like asking someone astounding in history to summarize their accomplishments. Not that I am particularly great, but just that everyone is. Like the poetDiane Wakoski, if you want to know anything about me, you should read my poetry. If you haven’t met me, consider yourself introduced by my art. It has a voice of its own.
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First dates are always so calculated. Starting from the dinner location and drinks afterward to conversations about jobs and interests. Absolutely predictable, boring. But what started as two friends going over scripts ended as the first date that will forever be engrained in my young mind. Walking down the cobblestone streets of Prague with our rumbling stomachs fueled purely by the energy of our love for being alive, we carelessly pick a restaurant. The food was unremarkable, but he was. Getting to know him was like reading a vintage novel, an overlooked treasure; I earnestly followed every page. He invited me along to location scout but we quickly lost track of our intended purpose. Following unknown paths, walking up stairs that led to nowhere, I felt free with him – like I could follow any impulse, any curiosity without hesitation and be met with a similar excitement. He let my imagination fly as we imagined the dark crevices of the gothic night canvas as troll houses, forbidden love stories, and active movie chase scenes. The night was far from over. But this is the end of how much I’m willing to stare. After all, you do have to keep a few things for yourself. Words can only do so much to paint the beauty of a vibrant memory. The images themselves are clear in my mind. I play them as a movie as I walk to classes, wash dishes, or do my readings – a smile spreading across my lips. Because from then on, he made each day together colorful. Not always with bright beautiful colors, but also bruised blue and ghastly grays, but colors nonetheless.
Abe Kim
Abe is currently a Weinberg sophomore from the bustling suburb of Syracuse, NY Baldwinsville. He is currently undeclared but says he is studying "college". When he's not being indecisive about major life decisions, he enjoys watching k-pop videos on youtube, not finishing his plates of food at the dining hall, and studying with others just so he can distract them.
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Once I was walking home and suddenly out of nowhere, a skunk appeared on the sidewalk 5 feet in front of me. As I stood rooted to the spot, it stared into my eyes and into my soul. Then it slowly continued walking. It was one of the scariest moments of my life, because I'm not sure how I would have afforded all the tomato juice.