Single Speed

Bringing my bicycle to Washington was one of the best decisions I could’ve made. Washington is teeming with life that metro and uber riders don’t experience. The city is alive and you become intimately familiar with every incline, every pothole, every glare from the steel and glass buildings towards K street. Instead of passively gazing out the window waiting for traffic, a bicycle lets you preview the vibrant smells and sounds of the restaurant before you arrive. I don’t hear the engine of the car; I hear different languages bickering while crossing the street.

There’s an inexplicable thrill that comes with the risk of riding along parked cars, wondering if they see you in their mirror or if they’ll open the door and take you out. I once forgot to put a Congressional Hearing on my calendar and my bosses called me to make sure I wasn’t in a bicycle wreck on my way to work.

I love the Capital Share Bike program, but I encourage you to ride your own bicycle. The bulky, cumbersome, red and yellow beasts leave you yearning for something more. The bicycle is such an efficient machine. You eat a bowl of oatmeal and convert it to 30 miles on a Sunday. It’s a great way to meet people or even go on a date, but what I love most about my bicycle is that it is my escape from it all.

Reflections on My Last Day

Today was my last day of serving as an intern in Congressman Hurt's office. I have had a truly incredible experience, and feel blessed to have had this opportunity to learn while helping serve the good people of our district alongside wonderful staffers and interns. Everyone in the office, from the Chief of Staff to my fellow interns, was so kind and appreciative of my work and valued what I brought to “Team Hurt”. I am so honored to have worked for Congressman Hurt during his final term- he is a model statesman, and I've seen firsthand how hard he has been working on behalf of myself and all of his other constituents. I used my staff ID to explore the Capitol one last time this evening before saying the last of my goodbyes, taking time to roam the unusually quiet and empty halls of Congress late in the day after the House had adjourned. As I walked through the old chambers, I got to reflect on how lucky I have been to see the inner workings of the most powerful branch of the most powerful government on the planet- I couldn’t help but get chills as I seemed to do almost every day I got to be a part of our experiment with political freedom. I hope to return soon!

- Jacob Perry

Go for it

WAIP ends in 15 hours. The saying “the days are long, but the years (4 months) are short” is SO true. While I’m sad that I will no longer be able to call myself a WAIPer, be able to ask the all-knowing Katy Hogan for endless amounts of advice, or have an never ending supply of We the Pizza, I am so excited to begin my post-WAIP life. I have learned more during my one semester in WAIP than I have during my other two and half years at OSU. I’ve learned how to network (I even kind of enjoy it now, only when I’m not hungry), I’ve become much more confident in myself,  I’ve learned how to go after what I want, and, most importantly, I’ve learned that everything will work out in the end (more than likely at an EXTREMELY slow pace). 

I’m not sure what my plans are after I graduate in December, I don’t know where I’m going to intern this summer, and I have no idea if I’ll be staying in DC past May. All of these uncertainties are daunting, but, at the same time they’re extremely exciting. After the infinite amount of times that I’ve been thrown out of my comfort zone during the program, I don’t even know what my comfort zone is any more. I’m extremely thankful for this. Because of WAIP I’ve gone after opportunities that I could have only dreamed of, but now, they’re a reality. 

-Sarah Blakeman

The Importance of Building Community at Work

I was fortunate to be a part of the Polaris Fellowship, which takes 9 individuals of all ages from all parts of the world, and teaches them how to combat the issue of human trafficking. Though we were all placed in different departments (I was in communications), we spent majority of our time together. Human trafficking is an intense topic, but one that we are all very passionate about. We would watch tough documentaries and have the most amazing discussions afterwards, where I really felt completely comfortable asking any questions.  Besides exploring Polaris together, we went on adventures throughout DC attending human trafficking awareness events on the Hill, watching the Emancipation Day fireworks, and eating at every food truck in the Farragut North area.

Besides building strong friendships with the other fellows, I made it a priority to get coffee with as many Polaris full time staffers as possible. After taking time to sit down and get to know my coworkers, I felt so much more a part of the organization. Everyone knew me and knew my story, just as I knew the staff members and each of their stories. People appreciated the effort I made to get to know everyone that I quickly became the go-to-fellow for organizing and planning all projects and events involving the fellows.  People trusted me and quickly gave me more responsibilities around the office. I became so excited to go into work everyday to see and talk with my coworkers. 

My time at Polaris has helped me develop a clearer vision of what my purpose is and what career opportunities I wish to purpose in order to achieve that purpose. I am so incredibly grateful for the lifelong friendships I have made with the other fellows and coworkers. I’m already counting down the days until I can come back to DC and visit!

By: Julie Manuszak 

152,804 Minutes

I have officially been a WAIP Fellow for about 104 days which equals to about 2546 hours, and a total of 152,804 minutes. The beginning of January marked the start of the hardest semester during my undergraduate career. Luckily, I chose my last semester to also be my hardest, you know, the one we are expected to slack off during the most. Instead of afternoon happy hours I found myself working 9am to 6pm with hardly even a lunch break. Instead of naps in between class I spent my time stressing out over multiple research projects and strict deadlines. I spent my final semester with OSU feeling so completely out of my comfort zone, away from all of my friends and family, thrown in with all of the other small fish interns of DC. But I wouldn't change a thing.

This last semester has taught me perseverance. I have learned the importance of existing out of my comfort zone. Surviving through the school assignments, after hour work projects, forced networking, and cohabitation with complete strangers has helped me to discover my greatest strengths and weaknesses including my ability to remain (mostly) positive in the toughest of situations, and my bad habit of oversleeping at any given opportunity. I will take with me all of the hard skills I developed while working for a public affairs team that whitewashes genocide, but also a number of skills from attempting work life balance, getting along with strangers, communicating with people I disagree with on every possible issue etc. I have learned, most importantly, that every dark cloud really does have a silver lining, even if it is buried underneath 10 feet of snow (i’m looking at you, snowmageddon 2016). I learned just how slowly time goes when you are waiting for class to be over at 9pm at night, and how quickly it goes when you are riding bikes with friends along the Potomac river bike trails. I found ways to survive weekly anxiety attacks over short and long time life decisions, and gained a real appreciation for Friday afternoon naps to help me forget it all. I have found value in surviving in the most expensive city in America while making less than 6 dollars an hour including discovering the cheapest happy hours, the easiest ways to get around the city, and the benefits of attending free events.

All in all, I feel so lucky to have been given the opportunity to spend my final semester in DC surrounded by hardworking and inspirational alumni, new friends, and roommates that now seem more like family. (Especially the annoying sibling who you can't wait to get away from, but then later will probably miss *cough James cough*). I will take back so many new perspectives that I cannot wait to apply to my new career working with government and the private sector starting in May, and so many new relationships I hope to build on in the future.  

Take Advantage of Being an Intern

It is strange typing this post, because it seems like it was just yesterday that I wandered into Senator Brown’s office to start my internship (which just happened to be the day of the State of the Union another thing I did not appreciate) As I approached my last week of the internship, it hit me that this could be the last time in my life I would have a badge that gains me accesses to every inch of the Capitol. Outside of giving the standard tours, I never took time to explore the Capitol grounds, so I made it my mission to discover unknown parts of the Capitol. Despite consciously making an effort to do so and urgings from staff to just go out and walk around, I did not take advantage of my last week on Capitol Hill. So my advice would be take time to go and just walk around, soak in being able to casually walk around the Capitol. I know it sounds cheesy, but you’d much rather have that feeling of “wow I’m actually working in a perhaps the most recognized building in the world” while walking around the halls of Congress than while you are writing a blog post looking at your expired id in an empty Starbucks.