Whatsoever A Man Soweth:
Part I: Sparty On!















It's hard to sum up 6 years at MSU. I started out as a punk kid from Ann Arbor who thought State was the worst school one could possibly attend. For years I rooted against my own school whenever we were playing U of M. Michigan football is a religion. I had posters and newspaper clippings of Michigan football covering my walls since I was in elementary school. I bled gold and blue and one day I was at a Michigan Michigan State game when I had an epiphanic moment: I was sitting in the stands rooting for U of M when everyone in the Big House gave me the impression that they were better than people who went to State. And I don't just mean the football team, but the students made me feel as though they thought they were better people than I. They thought that they were smarter, faster, stronger and better citizens than those at MSU. And it hit me, students at U of M have a sense of entitlement about them that is so obvious it's sickening. People at U of M (I don't mean 100% of people, just the majority) are snooty assholes who look down their noses at anyone who doesn't go to their school. To draw an analogy, there are two main golf clubs in Port Huron: The Port Huron Golf Club and The Elks Club. PHGC is to U of M as The Elks Club is to MSU. My brother and I have always hated PHGC because of the way we are treated there. We are looked down at, chastized for not tucking in our shirts, assumed to be hooligans because we are not white and the kicker is that the course isn't even very good but for some reason costs thousands more to be a member. The Elks on the other hand is a nationwide organization that raises money for charities and contributes back to the community, everyone is very nice and friendly, people can wear jean shorts (if that terrible fashion faux pas strikes their fancy) and it is the nicest course in the area. My point is, the moment I realized how terrible U of M was, I embraced State wholeheartedly and State embraced me.

I have had some people visit me over the years at State and the one thing everyone comments on is how nice everyone is. People at State are some of the nicest people you will ever meet. Unlike our rivals to the east, we are like a VW Jetta: Ego-Free. We don't care who is the best in the class, just as long as everyone is happy with themselves. We don't hate people just because they go to a different school (don't get me wrong we will boo our hearts out against U of M, but we won't degrade them) and best of all, we make everyone who doesn't go to State feel like they're a Spartan. A perennial party school, MSU is the best place you can go to in the Big Ten and enjoy every minute of it (thought I also hear good things about Wisconson).














When I first got to MSU, I heard all these stories about how pretty campus was and I was schocked to find what seemed like a concrete jungle. Of course, it wasn't until I had classes that weren't in the heart of campus to realize the real beauty of it. Though I'm still not a fan of the central and southern areas of campus, it is most definitely a beautiful campus. I have spent the last few days walking around and found some beautiful areas that I never even knew existed. I never thought you could find a quiet hidden nook in a garden next to a pond in the middle of a campus of 46,000 students. Spots like that are all over. The more I see the campus the more I appreciate it. I mean we have a huge river that runs right through campus. The key is to walk around when you don't have class tainting the direction you walk in or the mood you are in. I guess it also helps to do it after you graduate so you have a good perspective of the school but on the other hand you hsouldn't wait. I finally got a chance to go up to the top of Beaumont Tower (our big clock tower that you can hear from everywhere on campus pretty much) and I was shocked to see that it's not automated. There is a guy up there on top with an organ type contraption that is connected to all 46 bells and he plays everyday at 12. My point is that if you are still in school, I reccommend that you go around your campus and discover the little things. It has made my goodbye to campus much easier now that I feel I have seen a few things (also after 6 years I have also had class in almost every single building and can relate to at least one class of 90 percent of students when they ratlle off their schedule.) Anyways this follows in the same vein of my whole Carpe Diem philosophy. It really doesn't last forever, unfortunately, so I implore you to do something new that your campus (or city of residence) offers that you have never done before.
















Anyways, I now bleed Green and White and am proud to be a spartan. I will miss the school and the campus and (sometimes) even East Lansing. People are what make these experiences worthwhile and the more things you do the more people you meet. As always, get your feet off the ground and reach for the stars. Go big or go home. Pain heals, chicks dig scars and glory lasts forever. Carpe Diem bitches.

I'm out

-M, p & z

oh ps - part II will come tomorrow with more pics. Thanks to Jordon for coming with me to the bell tower and taking pictures of me with Sparty. "Whatsoever A Man Soweth," is inscribed on the front of Beaumont Tower, that's where I got the title for this farewell blog.