player on scholarship at Howard University. This was an interesting
time for me. After all, I was barely an adult leaving all my family
and friends behind, and I was preparing to take on a new chapter of
life.
Not to mention, this transition was a hot one! I stay in Charles R
Drew Hall, and it had no air conditioning! Again, this was 2001.
Needless to say, by the time I was out of there, I knew precisely how
to place the fan, crack the window, and crack the door so that room
felt like heaven! That is until I tried 'hell wings' from Cluck-U
Chicken, the first and only time I ever had to sign a waver for some
HOT wings! This was also the first time I had ever shared a room with
someone I did not know. Weird!
Anyway, what made the transition a little easier, was that I looked at
DC as a slightly more urban version of home. I mean, folks are
hospitable and all, but don't let me walk up to somebody I don't know
and say hello. DC is a metropolitan, intercultural place, but I had to
learn that I'm just not gonna catch a cab in sweat pants.
I also remember being intrigued by the activism in DC. I think the
first display I saw, as I was waking up Georgia Ave on my first day of
class, was the Black Panther Party standing in the parking lot of
McDonalds. Who'd have know I would go on to be involved with some of
these movements?
2001 was the year I met some of the foundational members of my circle
of friends. I think Taylor Pace and Muhsinah were the first two people
I met - Taylor during placement exams and Muhsinah in the practice
rooms. 'Til this day, I still regard them as two of the most talented
people I know.
As months passed, I met more and more people to call my closest
friends. Since my DC experience had started out on the upside of
interest I knew I'd have some good times ahead of me.
..:: IMUNURMe ::..
