Tyler Rauch's Blog

Time flies when you're having fun!!

    I felt this title to be appropriate for this blog for a few reasons. First and foremost, I have not blogged in about two weeks which means this is WAY past due. It is also appropriate, however, because I am already on my last Thanksgiving break in college. Not only did the break from school come way to fast, but the break itself is going by too fast. I, of course, attribute all of this to the fact that after almost three and a half years in college, I am still having fun.

    What kind of fun? Well, for starters, this past Saturday I had the opportunity to do two really neat things. The first, of course, was getting to see snow (unexpectedly) while at Appalachian State University and the second (also the main reason why we even went to App State) was presenting at the North Carolina Undergraduate Research & Creativity Symposium (NCUSCS). I, along with two other classmates and a few others from Queens, had the chance to do Marketing Research in class on two very real products then create a report and poster presentation that we could share with others at the conference. Oddly enough, being one of the smallest (if not the smallest) university boded pretty well for us. We did exactly what we came to do and attracted a variety of spectators for about three and a half hours straight. Our professor, Dr. Cox accompanied us to make sure we stayed out of trouble and was also pleased with our performance last Saturday. Perhaps the best part was seeing students from Duke and NC state congratulate us on not only a great idea but a well executed project. Later, we even had a women from ECU tell us how impressed she was with Queens and our Marketing Dept. as compared to hers at ECU.

    Before all of that, however, I had to finish up a week of busy classes and prepare to leave on my week long Thanksgiving holiday. I had a 8-12 page paper due on Thursday and a paper/presentation on Tuesday. Both went well and I am happy to know that they are finally over! This will free up some more of my time and allow me to focus on those finals that will be here in just a few short weeks.

    Currently, I am in South Dakota with my oldest brother and his wife along with their son and my parents. He serves for the United States Air Force and is based here in Rapid City, SD. This is the first Thanksgiving I will have spent not at home in Lake Mary, but it is most certainly worth it to see my family. Besides, I have gotten to see some awesome stuff. The other day I had my brother take me inside one of his jets and show me how everything worked. To see pictures doesn't do justice until you've sat in the seat that your brother fights wars in. Pretty neat huh? I will have pictures shortly so you can see for yourself. We also saw Mt. Rushmore which was awesome and absolutely unbelievable. The view on the drive up and the view of these massive sculptures is just incredible. To top it all off, tomorrow I will have the pleasure of seeing the first ever Rapid City minor league hockey team in action in their FIRST home game EVER! I can't wait :)

    Now it wouldn't be a Thanksgiving break blog without mentioning what we all go on break for! THANKSGIVING!!!! We had a great Thanksgiving meal with the family and one of my brothers pilot's families. This was so much fun and we had so much food. With absolutely gorgeous weather and awesome company how can you go wrong?! I love this holiday because you can eat whatever you want for days, not feel guilty and it seems like nothing ever goes down (unless of course I am in the house). We ate like champs, watched football and finished off the night with some hilarious games after the babies got put to bed. All in all, this trip has been a GREAT success!!!!

    Outside of all this fun the trip has also helped me realize what I am thankful for. I am most certainly thankful for not only a healthy family, but the opportunity to travel, get an education and do things that many kids may never have a chance to do. I suppose at the end of the day, the best two words to describe what I am thankful for is health and opportunity. Without those two things, I wouldn't be anywhere and I can't thank god enough for that.

    With that being said, it's about that time to get out of here. my dad, brother and I are going to throw some ribs on the grill and try to finish this trip off right!I'll keep my blogs updated over the next few weeks with exams, going home and lacrosse but it is going to be crazy busy! Stay warm, stay safe and let me know if you have any questions! Until next time, keep having fun but don't forget that time flies!!!!

Got Queens???

    What a weekend! In three days, I managed to attend three major Queens events. Ranging from sorority semi-formals to casino night, I think I pretty much did it all and came out completely exhausted! All great fun of course, but very draining nonetheless.

    For starters, I had the pleasure of attending the Kappa Delta sorority semi formal on Friday night. The event was held in Burwell (the really pretty building right in the middle when you drive by campus) and looked absolutely great. Luckily, after a little while at the dance, they held a ceremony that awards a select male or two the privilege of wearing the Kappa Delta letters. The males given the privilege to wear the letters are known as a dagger men and literally get a set of letters from the ladies in the Kappa Delta house. To get this honor, you must exemplify all that the Kappa Delta's feel the ladies in the sorority must posses to become a member. Only a handful of males are allowed to wear the letters at any point in time which makes this even more prestigious. Luckily, on Friday night Iwas named a dagger man!!!! I can't say how happy and surprised I was to receive such an honor, but I am sure glad I did :) I always have a blast with the Kappa Deltas and this time was no different. It was especially awesome because my sister-in-law is also a Kappa Delta so it felt good knowing we had one more thing in common!

    After a great night, I was back up early for our second Discover Queens. This is a great event where we not only get a chance to talk to prospective students and their parents, but give campus tours and allow them to hear from the president and a number of deans at Queens. It takes place from about 8:30am till 1:30pm or so and lets students get a really great taste of what Queens has to offer. I had the chance this time to do a quick speech about my internship with Ford Motor Company and then sit in on the businesss session with our Dean and Chair of the business school. It truly is a great day and awesome opportunity to show how special Queens can be! I always meet a few parents from Florida or lacrosse recruits who I played against back when I played on Team Florida. It really is a small world when it's all said and done. At this point in the weekend I was pretty tired, but I am an extrovert and people always energize me so naturally I got my second wind around lunch.

    This second wind, however, lasted only long enough to help set up for my third event of the weekend. Casino Night is always soo much fun and a huge campus tradition. Campus Union Board (CUB) is the club that puts this event on and I am the secretary of it so naturally I had to make sure I was helping out. Students dress up and the cafeteria is turned into a casino with music, dancing, food and the whole bit. This years theme was Arabian Fantasies and turned out great! Set up took a few hours and when we finished I had no choice but to take a nap! I was beat and the event hadn't started yet! By the time it was ready to start, I had gotten my rest, put on my game face and put on my costume. Thats right, I actually had the opportunity to dress up like Aladdin which was a ton of fun. I had the whole bit and just ran around all night taking photos and being a goof ball (like usual). The students seemed to have a blast, enjoy the prizes and really take advantage of such a great time! It's a shame, but this was my last Casino Night.

    In the end, I was just beat but couldn't wait to get a good nights sleep and knew that I did just about everything fun I could possibly do one weekend at Queens. This weekend was a great success for so many reasons, but mainly because so many peoples' hard work went into planning such a variety of events and they all turned out so great! Events like these just justify my love for this university that much more!

    It's past my bed time and I am starting to crash so I'll get out of here, but have a great week and don't forget to contact me with any questions!!!! tyler.rauch@qmail.queens.edu

GOOD NIGHT!

The "Real" World

    To be completely honest, I am fairly certain that I have officially caught the bug. Not the flu or a common cold, but that drive and excitement that gets you through each year and pushes you to be the best you can be. It is now that I am getting that second wind during this first semester of my senior year. Generally speaking, I like many college seniors am eagerly looking forward to graduation and all that the "real world" has to offer. A consistent salary, no homework, a bigger place and maybe even a new city.  Who knows, maybe graduate school or coaching overseas.

    Unfortunately, with my second wind, I have also grown up a little bit more. If an amazing internship with Ford Motor Company, meeting the President and CEO Alan Mulally, living on my own, traveling abroad, playing competitive Division II athletics and nearly completing four years at a top university wasn't enough, I have found yet another way to mature and better prepare myself for the future. How you ask?

    I like to think it is because I found the secret. I actually discovered the secret about a year ago when I was talking to fellow classmate Evan Sprinkle about internships, involvement, etc... Unfortunately, I never took what he said to heart...Until now. In our conversation, I mentioned to him that I wanted to get as involved as possible to prepare for the "real world". Evan simply smiled and said, "Tyler, THIS IS THE REAL WORLD". He looked around and continued, "This..All of this is real". I just nodded and agreed, but about a year later I thought about that conversation and it never meant so much. Here, I have been getting involved, keeping my grades up and meeting as many people as possible to prepare for something that most students assume comes after you walk across that stage with your degree.

    The secret, however, is that within the experience and knowledge you gain from four years at Queens, you have actually been living in the "real world" as real as it comes. Countless leadership, management and core classes that were designed to help me as a student separate myself from the pack and help me live a noble life as a person is finally taking shape. I don't feel like just a student at Queens anymore, but someone ready to make that stride for the top and be the best at whatever I do. I don't see dry erase boards, classrooms or homework, but opportunity and a chance to take the tools I have gained in four years and use them in any future endeavors I may encounter. I have learned from Queens to take what life gives you, take opportunities presented to you and use them to not only lead but help.

    Sure, I might put a little more thought into this than the average senior, but after taking a step back and realizing that I'm already there, it has been the fuel for my fire. I have never felt more inclined to be everywhere and do everything. Granted, it may not be humanly possible, but hey, it never hurt to try right? I can't tell you how busy I want to be or how hard I want to work. 6:30am workouts with the lacrosse team, countless hours of tutoring, helping out at four hour events in costume, giving up entire weekends for conferences or Queens events and even sacrificing sleep among many other things has been the "real" world for me. This is it and as much as I don't want it to end, I can't say enough about how happy I am to be prepared for what I am now going to call the next step...Not the "real" world.