Hi HOEMies! We hope you’re enjoying our Humans of HOEM series so far. If you haven't had a chance to read our last post, you can check it out here!
Today’s interview features Mario, a 2nd year student pursuing a Bachelor of Commerce in Business Management at Ryerson University! Mario is into fashion, thrifting, anime and exploring the city during his spare time. If you have a thrift store or anime recommendation, leave it in the comments below!
Now, lets get to the interview:
Nada: What were you most excited about when you decided to live at HOEM?
Mario: Meeting all kinds of people! And seeing people in elevators and having those awkward moments and stuff.
Nada: What’s your happiest memory at HOEM?
Mario: Hard to pick one. There was this time when I had a meeting with my RA Lauren, I was new and didn’t know stuff and she kind of explained everything. It made me excited to start the school year and meet people.
Nada: Did you meet anyone you’d consider a friend at HOEM? And how did you meet them?
Mario: Yeah, a couple! Making friends during COVID is kind of like a job. I think one day I was bored and I was just going to random floors and I went to the 19th floor. I saw [some people] playing FIFA - I’m pretty good at it but hadn’t played in a while. So I sat down and watched and they were nice and asked me to play and [with that], I made two friends!
Nada: What’s your favourite way to spend your free time at HOEM?
Mario: I watch Anime a lot. Listen to music...
Nada: What’s your biggest hope/goal that you have for the next year?
Mario: To be more open. When I first came, I was in my room a lot and it was winter and sad. I want to be more myself and more outside and meet more people.
Nada: Who are you inspired by?
Mario: Not to sound narcissistic and say no one…I am gonna say no one. I just feel like everyone has their own stuff going on and I am always in my head. Can I say Jesus?
Nada: What’s something you’re really happy about right now?
Mario: I watched this Anime and in the series the main character gets a love interest and I am really happy about their relationship.
Nada: How has it been like living at HOEM during the pandemic?
Mario: It’s been a lot of emotions to be honest. When I came here, I got a really warm welcome. HOEM has done their best to keep me in check.
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Thank you for reading! Stay tuned for the next Humans of HOEM interview as we gear up to welcome our HOEMies for the Fall semester!
Credits:
Images by: Jordana Petruccelli
Interviewed by: Nada Abbass and Anirudh Muruganand
Transcribed by: Nada Abbass