intermediate program summer site : conversations : second session



	aaron from virginia (7/30) Aaron is a self-proclaimed nerd who loves to cook and figure out new technology. As a second year student, he's happy to be back at Explo and has made even more friends this year! He was so excited about taking a course in role-playing games that he completed the application for Explo "the moment sign-up opened," just so he was guareenteed a spot in the class! How do you like this year? It’s different. This year I’ve made more friends than I did last year. We met people in the hall. At the first dinner, I just started talking to people and made friends then. We were doing an icebreaker, thinking of names and ways to describe ourselves. I said I was probably the biggest nerd ever and then someone a little further down says “I dare to compare!” . . . He won, though [laughs]. And why do you consider yourself nerdy? What sorts of hobbies do you have? Well, recently I’ve been working on a rubber band ball. I’ve snapped a couple, it's so big. I started it at Explo during an activity and I kept going on our way back from the trip. I bought eight small bags of rubber bands from the Yale bookstore. So, if you were at the Yale bookstore, that means you went on the New York trip, didn’t you? Yeah. Tell me a little bit about that. . . Wicked, the Broadway show, was really good. Yeah, we took a coach bus down in the morning and then were there in time to eat lunch in Central Park. Then we went to see Wicked that night. Sounds like fun! So, what classes are you taking? “Your First Cup of Java”, which is intro to Java programming, and then the role-playing game-design course, “Lasers, Dragons, Wizards and Warriors”. Tell me a bit about “Your First Cup of Java”. What have you done so far? Well, we’ve learned how to program some programming and I’ve learned that my brain isn’t big enough for programming [laughs]. What made you want to take that class? I had no idea how to program and the profession I want to do is video-game design, so I really need to learn [laughs]. Sounds like both your courses have to deal with what you want to do professionally. Wow! So, how is "Lasers, Dragons, Warriors and Wizards" going? Well, it's not really what I want to do professionally, because it's not video game design. It's more Dungeons and Dragons type or role-playing with cards. We get to choose what kind of RPG we want to design in our group. We’re making a fantasy-based board game called “Silver Song”. It’s an RPG where you can buy upgrades, items, that stuff. You go through the boards and can beat bosses and enemies with spells and weapons. I heard that you’ve been looking forward to that class for a while. Yeah, I signed up the moment sign-up opened. I finished the application like five minutes after it was ready. I tried to get into the course last year but it was full. What are you taking for mini-courses? “Engineering Challenge” and “Iron Chef”. We tried to measure time without a watch in “Engineering Challenge”. My group made an hourglass thing to measure time, and then I made an additional one with concrete, water, and aluminum foil. It didn’t keep time that well, but it was just fun to make . . . and it looked like a giant burrito. What about “Iron Chef”? Have you ever cooked before this? Yes, I’m my mom’s apprentice. I cook all kind of stuff. My favorite kinds are Italian and Mexican. We’re making stir-fry in class. The first class we had a recipe to follow. The second, tomorrow, we have a little more freedom. And then the third lesson we have complete freedom, no recipe at all. That’s great that you’re learning to cook! I like cooking. It‘s fun, except when it’s a chore [laughs]. I have two specialties: banana muffins, no nuts, and oatmeal cookies, no raisins, just oatmeal cookies. We used the same recipe in the bake-off last week, which we lost, but it was fun. The batch of cookies that came out of the oven after judging would have won, but they were just too late. Do you think Explo is preparing you for high school? Yeah, a little bit. The whole social aspect -- they want you to not be “plugged in” [to electronics like iPods, etc.] and instead interact, be engaged. And the classes are really cool. more conversations > first session \| second session