Madeline's First Post

My name is Madeline Houser.
I went to Bellefontaine High School in Bellefontaine, Ohio. Well, I obviously go to The Ohio State University... (at Marion) but I have most of my classes on Main Campus. My dad is an assistant professor of internal medicine for Ohio State and works at The Ross Heart Hospital at Wexner. Not getting into Main Campus was probably the most disappointing moment in my life, I cried for days. Being told you're a Buckeye for your entire life and having it all taken away by a really good ACT score that just wasn't good enough sucked, especially since it is the family school (my family are all alumni). So far Marion has treated me well and this is my last semester here. I started Summer Semester so that way I would be at Main Campus for part of my "Freshman Year" Technically I'm a Sophomore right now and will be considered a Junior almost by the end of my first year. I am a Hospitality Management Major and want to be an event planner for the Ritz Carlton Company. I guess that's enough about school.

My fun fact was that I love to go skiing out west. My favorite place to ski would have to be Grand Targhee in Wyoming. Grand Targhee is about 45 minutes from Jackson Hole where I've also skied. I am a pretty good skier, I like to ski blacks but my favorite are blues just because I can take them faster and don't have to be as worried about injuries when I crash, not as big of a threat of falling off a cliff or into a crevasse on a blue. My favorite part about skiing is the rush I get when I'm flying down the mountain and feeling the wind in my face. The wind burn is definitely worth it. Plus, the thought of tackling a mountain is pretty awesome too. When I go skiing out west I go with my parents and brothers and my "aunt" and "uncle" (they're family friends). Skiing can be pretty scary at times because I hate falling, it feels like losing, and I am a self taught skier and like to feel accomplished and never fall, but the best advice I have ever got came from my "Uncle" Steve, he told me "Maddie, if you don't fall you aren't trying hard enough. You have to fail sometimes in order to succeed and improve."

I guess a few other things about me are that I love to bake and I am really good at it too. I get paid to bake for parties or events sometimes. Baking really calms me down. I'm 25% Italian so family and food are a really big part of my life. Someday I hope to make it to where my Nana is from in San Pietro Avellana in Italy to see my homeland. Lastly, I was lucky enough to compete in the National High School Model United Nations competition in New York City when I was a Sophomore in High School. It was a really exciting time, so international affairs and human rights are really important to me. I also competed on the state level and got involved with an International Outreach Program for Education in Nigeria (IOPEN)

Lastly, my favorite Buckeye story is the story of my mom and dad. It isn't a very important story to really anyone but me but Ohio State made my family and that is so important to me. My parents met at Ohio State when my dad was in medical school and my mom was doing undergrad. My parents got engaged at Mirror Lake and lived in Columbus while my dad finished school. My mom says that everything good in her life came from Ohio State because it lead to them getting married and having a family. I came from a family of Buckeyes and it's in my blood. Since my dad works for the University and is a President's Club member I have always been around Ohio State and I thank my dad for that. Being around this University has shaped my life and it led me to attending THE Ohio State University. My parents are my favorite Buckeye story because it led to my Buckeye story.