Christina Lim

Journalism

Dr. Bednar

Superwoman

 

            I thought I was late.  Itıs 2:40 p.m. and Iım the one who set up the 2:30 p.m. appointment for our first interview.  Talk about bad first impressions.  I hope that she hasnıt been waiting for too long. 

I suggest meeting at Southwestern Universityıs ³hang-out² spot, The Cove, as a neutral and comfortable interview place.  As I rush to The Cove from work, I quickly scan the room for her.  Sheıs not here yet.  Iım in the clear.  I grab a drink and sit down at a booth easily visible to the entrance. 

            Five minutes later, Colleen rushes through the entrance.  She looks like she was in a hurry also.  Her hair is messily pulled back in a low ponytail, with the loose front bangs swept behind her ears, and sunglasses rested comfortably on her head.  She is wearing an Applebeeıs uniform, with a very visible nametag that yells the name, ³Colleen.² 

            ³Iım sorry Iım late,² she apologizes, catching her breath.  ³I needed to change into my work clothes after class, just in case.²  She plops down into the comfortable booth couch and smiles.  She didnıt even break a sweat.

            I had never spoken to her before or even seen her on campus before this semester.  From what I saw of her in class, she was always very quiet and reserved, keeping to herself for the most part.  I was worried that our mutual shyness would prevent us from having a productive conversation.  But from the moment she sat down and smiled, I already had a feeling that my first impressions of her were wrong.  It didnıt hit me until later that Colleenıs rushed entrance in The Cove, with uniform and all, was simply a glimpse of Colleenıs ³super² nature.

*          *          *

            Faster than a speeding bullet. More powerful than a locomotive. Able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. Look! Up in the sky. It's a bird. It's a plane. It's Superman! Yes, it's Superman - strange visitor from another planet who came to Earth with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal men. Superman - who can change the course of mighty rivers, bend steel in his bare hands, and who disguised as Clark Kent, mild-mannered reporter for a great metropolitan newspaper, fights a never-ending battle for Truth, Justice, and the American Way.

*          *          *

Southwestern University is a small, liberal arts college situated in a quaint community called Georgetown, Texas.  Because the college only has about 2,000 students total, campus life can seem small and quiet at times.  However, for the most part, students enjoy the close-knit environment.  Since most of the students are from Texas, many take a 2-3 hour drive home for the weekend to visit old friends and family.  Typically, full-time students enroll in 4 classes a semester, which can often seem like a handful.  However, many also participate in the work-study program at the university.  Because of the flexibility of working on-campus, students take full advantage of job opportunities at hand.

*          *          *

            Truly, Colleen is not your average Southwestern University student.  Her feats surpass those of a typical teenager.  Somehow, she beats the hands of the clock and creates the time to do everything.  Miraculously, she manages to be a full-time student, a waitress, a daughter, a girlfriend, a Resident Assistant, and a sorority girl, all at once.  Yet, she still finds the days to skip class and sleep in until 2:30 p.m.  You may think that Colleen could not possibly be human.  And, I admit, it seems outrageous to me as well.  Yet, the only way I am able to make sense of any of it is that she must have a little Clark Kent and a little Superman, disguised in the body of a 20-year old young woman.

*          *          *

            Unfortunately, I donıt think she can run faster than a speeding bullet.  Yet she seems to be quick and able enough to handle various things at once.  She is your ultimate multi-tasker.  So, it doesnıt surprise me that, at our first meeting, she was wearing her work uniform. 

She works at Applebeeıs, a local Georgetown restaurant, every Thursday and Friday night.  For any typical college student, working the two best going-out nights of the week would seem like a drag.  However, her work-oriented mindset permits her to think otherwise.  For her, Thursday and Friday nights are some of the busiest and best nights of the week, allowing her to make the most money ­ sometimes $200.00 working just those two days.  Thatıs not a shabby deal, considering on-campus jobs get paid only minimum wage. 

            When it comes to work, sheıs all business, with a ³donıt-mess-with-me² attitude.  Colleen is the trainer for all new employees.  She admits that most people are scared of her because she tells them what to do.  ³They just donıt want to piss me off because Iım a trainer and they should respect me because Iıve been working there longer and know what needs to be done.²  She gets seniority at the restaurant and pretty much gets to choose her schedule and the sections she gets.  But it didnıt always come easily.

*          *          *

            Things really changed for Colleen after her freshman year.  She full-heartedly became independent, in more ways than one.   That summer, she decided that she didnıt want to go to her home of Honey Grove, Texas anymore.  She would get a job, find an apartment, pay her bills and support herself.  All of this would be worth getting away from the small town she now refers to as, ³Hell.² 

To this day, she doesnıt go back home that often ­ just for the holidays and special occasions.   ³I just donıt feel connected there anymore.  Itıs my hometown, but I only talk to two or four people there.  Thereıs nothing for me there. ³  She expects something more of herself and wants a future outside of that small town.  Aside from most college kids who long and anxiously anticipate the days of going home, she casually says that, ³I go home for two days and Iım ready to come back here.²  Itıs obvious that she now feels as if Georgetown is her home.  Sheıs established a comfortable place for herself here, with good friends and a boyfriend.

            But she knows where her priorities lay.  Over the summer, she needed to work full-time to make rent, which she oftentimes found challenging and difficult ­ not an easy feat for a 19 year-old.  During the school year, she used to work four nights a week, until she finally decided that she was going to go nuts.  Prioritizing studying over working, she demanded that her boss change her schedule to only two nights a week.  She knows what needs to be done, yet still understands the need for balance.

            ³I really prioritize. I pick the thing thatıs the least important and I donıt do it.  I realize that you canıt do everything and that sometimes I can take on too much, but I wouldnıt have it any other way.  I really, really like the way my life is set up.²

            And she even enjoys being a waitress.  It allows her to get away from the mundane life of campus life, to see new people, and to get to interact with different people.  Itıs a nice change to see different faces and encounter people of different ages and experiences. In fact, this is where she met her boyfriend, Stephen.  They both work at Applebeeıs.  She likes being able to get away from school stress and to lead a different kind of lifeŠone that doesnıt include the campus cafeteria or the library.  She gets so hyped up after waiting tables all night that it sometimes takes her three hours to calm down after getting home.

*          *          *

            I left our first interview with a sense of Colleen that can be summed up in one word: extraordinary.  I knew that she did not fit into the mold of your average Southwestern student.  But, for our next meeting, I was eager to see another side of Colleen that hinted at normalcy.

*          *          *

            She offers to meet in her room for our second interview.  As I enter her room, I immediately notice how extraordinarily tidy and well kept it is.  I look around and see that everything is in its place.  CDs are neatly arranged in a rack.  Tapes and movies rest nicely on a bookshelf.  The floor is clear and the bed is made.  There are no dirty socks lying around or shoes scattered on the floor.  The only thing she has to do to ³clean up² is take the blankets off her couch for me to sit on.  She has a ³To-Do² List on her treasure chest, with most of the items already being scratched off.  Sitting in the corner of the room is a pretty nice TV with a built-in VCR and DVD player.  Unsurprisingly, she bought it last year, just adding to the list of expensive merchandise, such as her stereo and computer, that she has proudly bought with her own money.

            We turn on the television to ease the tension and just to relax as well.  I begin to learn more about the ³other² side of Colleen.  She actually does have time for a social life.  Reserving her Saturday nights for ³social    activities,² she loves eating out at new restaurants and hanging out with her sorority sisters.  There are pictures on her walls, as well as in frames that decorate her room.  She shows me a few, dictating the people and the event, and then realizes, ³Oh gosh, theyıre all party pictures, thatıs terrible.²  For Sundays, she insists that she needs a day to catch up with homework, hang out, and sleep in.  And she says it in such a way that implies that she only needs one day to do it all, contrasting from the majority of us that need at least a weekend.

Somehow, she makes time to see Stephen regularly.  But their time together is never rushed or hurried.  They see each other almost everyday, in and out of work.  At first glance, he saw her the way I first did.  As he put it, she reminded him of ³a quiet bomb.²  He remembers her as being very, very quiet, then she when sheıs around her friends ­ ³She gets wild, just like all college kids do.²  Stephen thought Colleen was older than 20 also.  ³I thought she was at least 21 and I figured sheıd be a good beer hook-up for me.  She just seems so much more mature.  Itıs all in the way that she carries herself.²  Sometimes, Stephen worries that Colleen may be taking on too much, but he knows that there more important things in her life.   ³She knows where her priorities are.  When her Grandma died last fall, she dropped everything.  She missed a whole bunch of stuff ­ like, two days of classes.  Family is very important to her.²  

*          *          *

I thought I discovered her secret.  She doesnıt sleep!  Thatıs how she makes time!  But like our previous interviews showed, I was wrong about her again.  For our third interview, Colleenıs door was open and she was sitting in front of her computer.  Itıs 2:30 p.m.  Sheıs eating a bowl of cereal, wearing her glasses and still in the comfort of her pajamas.  ³I just woke up a little while ago.  I had a late night yesterday.² 

She admits that she canıt do everything, yet she still attempts it all.  There arenıt enough hours in the day or days in the week to keep up with her schedule.  She knows her responsibilities and yet makes time to play.  As Iım about to leave, she remembers that she has to record ³Friends² tonight while sheıs at work.  As she sets her VCR timer, I realize that there might be a sense of normalcy to her and that she might not be entirely super human.  She recognizes the necessity to watch the best show on television.

*          *          *

Unknowingly, Stephen revealed Colleenıs Kryptonite, her weakness, to me.  If Stephen had to describe one bad thing about Colleen, it would be that, ³She hates bugs.²  She admits it also.  ³Oh gosh, I woke up this morning and saw it.  I knew I had to tell Stephen to get it later.²  If faced with a bug in battle, Colleen would surely lose.  She can effortlessly work nights and weekends, spend quality time with her boyfriend, and take two courses with a professor who has a reputation for being hard.  But she isnıt brave enough to rise up and defeat the evil bugs of her first-year dormitory.  No matter how much she accomplishes and achieves, Colleen manages to do it all because sheıs so grounded and normal.  The ŒClark Kentı in her prevails over anything unnatural or unworldly.  And that resolved it, Colleen couldnıt possibly be superwoman.  Superheroes canıt be scared of bugs.

 

 

 

 

Authorıs Afterword

 

Writing this profile narrative was much more difficult than writing the personal narrative.  When interviewing Colleen, I never went in with a set of questions in mind.  I just hoped that weıd make good conversation and that something good would come out of that.  I had all the transcripts from our conversations in front of me while I began to write and realized that I had way too much information.  I had to look over all the interviews and just pick a theme and stick to it.  It was difficult for me to organize my thoughts as well as our discussions into one coherent piece.  I picked the ³superman² theme because I wanted to exaggerate and emphasize her work ethic in comparison to a regular student, but then I also wanted the reader to reach the conclusion that she was just a normal person in the end.

In revising this article for the website, I had to make sure that the information would be understandable to all readers ­ those within the campus community and those who would have no clue as to what Southwestern University was like.  I had to add more details about the university and the community, as well as the norms of the campus and the students.  Also, I had to take out words that only ³Southwestern² people would understand and replace them with more generic terms.