The Rocket

Issue date: 4/27/07 Section: Opinion

It's finally here, it's time to graduate and I guess it's time to write my goodbye column for the Rocket. For weeks now, I've been trying to think of what to talk about or what to say exactly and I still don't know really what I want or should say.

Well, I'm a simple man and I'm just going to write a simple goodbye column telling you what I think of my years at SRU and giving you some advice. Like what it says in my column byline box below my headshot, I'm "Straight Shootin'." I honestly don't know why it is "Straight Shootin';" it was given to me randomly at the beginning of my junior year and I just couldn't think of anything else more creative than that, so it just kind of stuck.

First off, I would like to thank my family and friends for helping me out during the past four years. I strongly believe that in order to be a good person, you must surround yourself with good people. I have made so many friends while working at the Rocket and I thank them for their friendship and for helping me out with my problems.

I would like to also thank my friends outside the editorial staff. My roommates and others outside the office have kept me sane from a very stressful job. Thank guys for listening and for making my four-year college experience a very unique, exciting and random one.

Next, I would like to thank my family. My parents and my sister have always been supportive of me and I honestly believe that without them pushing me and helping me, I would not be half the man I am now. The past couple of months, I have truly valued my family because, as we speak, my father is recovering from his second heart surgery in the past couple of weeks. You value family in these tough situations, and being two hours away from them during this tough time has been difficult. I'm always thinking about them as they are always thinking about me, and I can honestly say that I'm blessed to have such a caring family.

Lastly, I'm going to give a shout-out and special thanks to all the coaches, administrators and athletes who I have interviewed and talked with while working with the Rocket. What makes a good journalist are good quotes from good people.

Well, I guess its time to give out some advice. My first bit of advice is to be active in college and to join a group or club as soon as possible. You don't want to spend all of your college life just lying on a couch and watching TV. My freshman year, on the second day of classes to be exact, I went into the Rocket office and I got a story assignment. As a shy, geeky freshman I didn't think I could handle it and thought about not writing the article, but luckily I had enough common sense to do a somewhat decent job on the article and from there on out I have been moving up on the food chain and having fun with the newspaper.

My last bit of advice can be useful in the college and professional level, and that is to stop the drama. I hate any kinds of drama, backstabbing, lies or people talking behind your back. I don't see the point of it, and I thought it was a high school thing, but I was wrong. It happened to me in the college world and will probably happen once again in the professional world. If you have a problem with someone or something, just say it to their face. We will all encounter people who feed off drama, I guess, and love lying to people, but I'm just telling you to dodge them and to be an honest person.

Well, I guess I'm done and I'm really not sure how to end my goodbye column. I could quote someone, or say something inspirational, but that wouldn't be my style. Remember, I'm simple and not that creative. But what I do know, though, is that I will cherish my years at SRU and the people that I have shared my life with, and I hate to say it, but I think I will always have ROCK PRIDE! Good bye, everyone.

Adam Brewer is a senior communication major and the sports editor for The Rocket.

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