Today the Cornell cohort came together for the first time when five of my peers and I ate dinner at Extreme Pizza in Hercules. I arrived at a few minutes before six, the second student there, and had the door opened by Mr. Chan-Law, who immediately introduced himself and Jun. We chatted about Middle College and AP courses until within a few minutes the other students arrived. The restaurant's business was slow; in fact, for a few minutes we were the only people there. Everyone ordered pizza except yours truly - I tried a salad.
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| Although the walnuts, bacon, and feta cheese were lovely, the large pieces of onion were off-putting. |
Once the food was served, talk shifted to the trip. Mr. Chan-Law offered tentative dates for our departure and return home. I was excited to learn that we will be seeing both St. Louis and Chicago before settling in at Cornell. Noting that pizza in Hercules is not generally considered to be quality cuisine, our chaperone informed us that he knows the best restaurants in Ithaca, and that we will be very happy eating out there. He added, however, that the daily food for Cornell students can be monotonous.
Within our cohort, there are four students from Hercules High. Although this made our conversation feel unbalanced initially, I know that as we spend more time together that issue will disappear. I look forward to spending time with everyone as we move towards our summer at Cornell.
It’s always a concern of ours that our cohorts might be unbalanced as you described. That’s why everyone needs to reach out and embrace the new and unknown. Just as they all need to reach out to bridge the gap between hercules, Middle College and ECHS, you and Jun need to do the same thing. But you knew that already, didn't you. Better to work out these kinks here in a casual setting rather than wait until you get on a plane as a group of strangers.
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