Students of Charleston

My name is Mary. I am a Sophomore at the College of Charleston and a communications major. For my Communications 215 class, there is an additional fourth hour. Rather than attending 40-50 hours of class, my professor allowed us to perform a project that reflected our personal goals and beliefs while reaching out to our community. I chose to ask my fellow classmates at the College of Charleston about their personal aspirations. Some I had met before, others I had not. I posed 7 questions that were meant to make them think about themselves and their possible mark left on the world: 1. How old are you? 2. What year are you? 3. What do you hope to accomplish within the next 6 months? 4. What are your dreams? 5. Do you believe you are close to accomplishing any of these? 6. What is holding you back? 7. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Sam. She is 18 years old and a freshman at the college. In the next 6 months, Sam hopes to accomplish college and all of its ins and outs. Sam dreams of getting her degree, getting a puppy and owning her own mansion. Because she is only a freshman, Sam believes she is not close to any of these because she hasn’t had enough college. In 10 years, Sam sees herself as a doctor. “I’ll definitely be a doctor, I’ll definitely have my mansion, 3 dogs, married and a little boy. I really want a little light blond baby boy.”

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Devon. He is 19 years old and a sophomore at the college. In the next 6 months, Devon plans to hike either across the country or on the Pacific coast trail. He also wants to be progressing towards a job that makes him happy and fulfilled. Devon’s long-term dreams consist of being retired by 50 years old with a lot of money in his pocket. “I’m not thinking about the typical things everyone else would say.” He would also like to get into the restaurant business and hopefully own his own restaurant. I asked Devon if he thought he was close to achieving any of these dreams and he replied, “No. The man is holding me back, being in college, having to sustain being in college also.” In 10 years, Devon would like to be working in a career that allows him to work independently and that pays well enough for him to travel. I admire his free spirit.

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Matt. He is 22 years old and a super senior. He was my waiter at Mellow Mushroom and was more than happy to be interviewed (although he refused to look at the camera). Matt said that he will be still serving tables and hopefully traveling in the next 6 months. He dreams of having a job that pays well and that he enjoys. He would also like to have other things but he was thinking professionally. He doesn’t think that he is very close to fulfilling his dreams though. “To get any kind of job or get into grad school, you need a hefty resume, like internships, etc., things I should’ve been doing since freshman year of college and I haven’t done”, he told me. Matt was quite blatant about where he sees himself in 10 years by replying “I really don’t know, sorry.”

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Anthony. He is 19 years old and a sophomore at the college. He also plays golf here and is friends with Ricky. In the next 6 months, Anthony would like to have better grades. He aspires to be a professional golfer and tells me that he does not believe he is close to doing so because of his mind. “Golf is mental”, he told me. 10 years from now, Anthony sees himself living in Jupiter, FL, playing golf and most likely being a member at some club there.

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Ricky. He is 21 years old and a sophomore at the college. He is also on the golf team. Ricky is from Italy, so his English was slightly broken so he didn’t have much to say. In the next 6 months, Ricky hopes that he can get better grades. He dreams of becoming a professional golfer but does not believe he is close to doing so because it’s all in his mind. Within the next 10 years, Ricky would like to move to New York City and be working.

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Arly. He is 19 years old and a sophomore at the college. In the next 6 months, Arly would really like to open his own pirated DVD company and “make the best collection of porn DVD’s and sell them really pricey.” He was not joking. As for his dreams, Arly would like to try the best chicken wings that anyone has ever fried and to own his own sugar cane plantation. He would also like to save all of the abandoned puppies in the world. “It’s a no puppy left behind policy”, he told me. Arly believes he is far from reaching his goals. “I’ve been working on some sweet porn – I’m just kidding but I think I’m pretty far from reaching my goals.” What is holding him back is his laziness and school. He also blames the City of Charleston. “This city is just too fun, I can’t focus.” In the next 10 years, Arly would like to be working in an international, corporate office giving financial advice to a “really hot Swedish milf”.

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Parker. He is 19 years old and a sophomore at the college. In 6 months, Parker is kind of unsure of what he would like to have accomplished. “I’ll be right here in 6 months so I guess don’t die between now and then?” he replied with hesitation. Parker dreams of having a job and not being broke so he can travel a lot. Poor Parker doesn’t believe he is close to accomplishing any of those things though and credits that to “being broke”. In the next 10 years, Parker plans on probably living in Charleston, where he’ll probably still be finishing his degree.

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Skylar. He is 20 years old and a sophomore at the college. Within the next 6 months, Skylar would really like to receive all A’s on his report card. When faced with the question of what are his aspirations, Skylar replied that he would like to “lead a life of happiness.” I asked him if he believed he was close to achieving his goal and he quickly replied “yes” and also said that there is nothing holding him back. Within the next 10 years, Skylar would really like to have a college degree and at least have paid off half of his debt but as for everything else, he’s not really sure.

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Brandon. He is 19 years old and a sophomore at the college. For Brandon’s 6 month plan, he had to think long and hard. “Well, I need to think about this… the next 6 months? I might need to smoke before I do this”, he replied with a snicker. Brandon settled on wanting to receive an autographed Wendy’s wrapper from his local garbage man. Brandon dreams of driving some sort of space craft in the future and he would really prefer it to be giraffe shaped. When I asked Brandon if he believed he was close to achieving his out of this world dream, he said yes but credited gravity for holding him back so far. Brandon’s 2 extremes for where he sees himself in the next 10 years are either on an island or in prison. Poor Brandon.

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Robert. He is 18 years old and a freshman at the college. In the next 6 months, Robert hopes to win the lottery and is aiming high for the powerball because “low aim is a crime.” Robert’s dreams are reliant on him winning the lottery, so after he wins, he would like to drop out of school and move somewhere tropical. Robert assured me that his winning ticket would be coming soon but what is holding him back currently is bad luck. If it’s 10 years in the future and you’re looking for a good time, you can find Robert on his yacht, which he bought with investment money that he had invested from winning the powerball.

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Chris. He is 19 years old and a sophomore at the college. When I asked Chris what he hoped to accomplish in the next 6 months, he replied, “well, I’m going to turn 20 and I would like to have 100-250 more Instagram followers.” Chris dreams of owning a really “chic” apartment and having 2 children, but not anytime soon. Chris also believes that he is pretty close to achieving all of these goals for his future because he gains 10-15 new followers on Instagram a month, he’s doing very well in school, and his boyfriend makes way more money than him already in the beginning of his career. In 10 years, look out for Chris as a stay home dad of 2 children, with a nanny, with his really “chic” apartment or townhome and happily married.

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Duncan. He is 22 years old and graduated in the spring from the college. Duncan hopes that in the next 6 months he can get a job. Duncan’s big dream is to finish every show on Netflix but he doesn’t believe he is close to doing so due to the volume of shows on the website. Unfortunately, in 10 years, Duncan sees himself receiving treatment for cirrhosis of the liver. (Totally preventable, Duncan)

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Jordan. He is 22 years old and has graduated from the college. When I asked Jordan about his 6 month plan, he was unsure other than the fact that he wanted to buy a new couch and a new blanket to go with it. Jordan’s dreams for his future consist of making it socially acceptable to wear pajamas without judgment in public and his long term goal is to be a therapist. When I asked Jordan if he thought he was close to achieving either of these dreams, he replied “no” and credited his work ethic for holding him back. If you’re looking for Jordan in the next 10 years, don’t look far because he sees himself “right on this fucking couch.”

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Elliott. He is 23 years old and a super duper senior here at the college. Elliott’s 6 month plan is to own a brewery and be able to accomplish 4 and a half push ups. I asked Elliott what his big dreams are and he replied “I already told you to own a brewery”, so I think it’s safe to say Elliott really wants to own a brewery. When faced with whether or not he believed he was close to achieving his brewery or push ups, he replied “no” and when I asked why he replied, “because of my alcoholism.” (Someone call Passages Malibu) Elliott’s future for the next 10 years seems bleak on account of him seeing himself dead from alcohol poisoning. I guess we can see why he is a super duper senior.

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Patrick. He is 22 years old and a super senior at the college. Within the next 6 months, Patrick hopes to get a job, become a millionaire, “blow it all promptly on hookers and coke”, then make another million (I’m hopeful he was kidding). Patrick’s dreams consist of having 60 children and (seriously) be the #1 squash player in the world. I asked him if he believed he was close to achieving his goal. He quickly replied, “give it 3 days and all of it will be done but for now I’m pretty hungover and I want a shower.” In 10 years, Patrick would like to hopefully see himself dead.

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Amanda (flawless). She is 19 and a sophomore at the college. In 6 months, Amanda’s goals are to live a healthier lifestyle and make better connections with family, like keeping in touch with them. As for Amanda’s dreams and big picture goals, she would really like to be successful either in marketing or modeling (I think we can already tell she’s successful with modeling^^). I asked her if she thought she was close to achieving her dreams and pursuits. She replied, “ehh, it depends. I make a lot of money modeling. But school makes it difficult to go to a lot of castings because of class.” For her 10 year plan, Amanda sees herself in either New York or Atlanta, doing some type of marketing, most likely in the fashion industry.  

[studentsofcharleston-blog]

This is Michelle. She is 20 years old and a sophomore at the college. Within the next 6 months, Michelle would be thrilled to get good grades. She also wants to make a lot of money at her part time job (at Fish on King, go visit her!). Her dreams consist of graduating college, actually getting a job unlike some college graduates and moving to California because the East coast is not her “cup of tea”. When I asked Michelle if she believed she was close to achieving any of these dreams, she replied, “yes, maybe not the moving part but like yeah.” In 10 years, Michelle plans on being married, a lot of vacation homes, and so so so much money. I asked if she wanted any children. She replied that she would maybe have one and then she quickly took that answer back and concluded she would not have kids because “they suck the life out of you. I know I sucked the life from my mother.”