Ben Perdue

The Finished Project!

When you get to college, you never think about the day when you’re going to have to graduate and get out into the real world.  Now that I’m almost at that point, I’ve started looking back at the time that I have spent here and have stirred up some good memories that I’ve made here at Gardner-Webb.  From here on until my final post as a GWU student, I will post one good memory a week from my four years here.

To begin with, I’ll tell one of my favorites.  When I was a freshman, there was a blank fence right outside our dorm that separated the outdoor basketball court from the dorm’s parking lot.  After walking past this blank, dull fence for almost a full year, several friends of mine and I decided that we were going to paint something on that fence.  It wasn’t until 2:30 a.m. a few weeks later, however, that we figured out what that something would be.  We found ourselves in walmart late that night and decided we would paint a sunrise/beach mural on the fence, but we needed to see an actual sunrise as inspiration.  So what did we do?  We drove to Charleston at 3:00 on a Thursday morning, of course!  And after returning exhausted, we painted that fence the next day.  What a memory.

Robbie K, Marlon, Dru, Jeremy, and Me on the way back from Charleston

So this week and next week here at Gardner-Webb University are going to be filled with midterms and other exams before Spring Break starts.  This period of time is usually one of the most stressful times for students here at GWU aside from finals week, but the best part about getting past it is that Spring Break is right around the corner.  This semester, I only have on midterm, but boy is it a big one.  My video and film editing class requires everyone to know the in’s and out’s of our editing software and perfect the skills learned in class, and memorizing that information well enough to explain the entire program on paper has proven to be quite a task.  There are also a multitude of projects and other assignments that fill the days leading up to break, but exactly one week from today, I’ll be southbound for Florida…and I absolutely cannot wait!

The countdown has arrived—Spring Break officially begins two weeks from today, and the days can’t pass by faster.  Students on campus have been arranging their schedules and making plans for trips all over the United States, and even the world. One of the most talked about and anticipated trip for some students has been the mission trip to Ireland for 10 days of the break.  Campus ministries always sets up short term mission trips over both fall and spring break to many different areas of the world.  For example, I had the opportunity to go to an orphanage in Ecuador my freshman year, followed by a campus ministry trip to the University of Wisconsin my sophomore year.

My plans for this year, however, area a little closer to home than South America or the Midwest.  This year, three of my friends and I have planned the trip of a lifetime—we will make the journey to the gulf coast of Florida to watch Spring Training Baseball.  This will actually be my second consecutive year doing this, but the trip last year was so awesome we couldn’t turn down the opportunity to go back.  Six days of baseball and the beach: it doesn’t get any better than that!

Lebron James takes a shot from the sideline in front of several Gardner-Webb students.

Last weekend, Gardner-Webb Student Activities sponsored a trip to Time Warner Cable Arena in downtown Charlotte to watch the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Charlotte Bobcats play basketball.  The price was a ridiculously low $10 (if you drove yourself), so we jumped on the opportunity and took a group down to watch the game.  Surprisingly, the Bobcats are having what you might call a decent season compared to years past, so we were hoping to see them put up a good fight against Lebron, Shaq, and the rest of the Cavs.  What we weren’t expecting, however, was the 20 point blowout as the Bobcats took the win and shut down Cleveland.  Play after play, it seemed that the two teams were neck-and-neck, yet when the fourth quarter came around, the Bobcats started to widen the gap and clinched a strong victory over one of the best teams in the NBA.  One of the highlights of the game was when a steal from Raymond Felton developed into a huge alley-oop to the all-star Gerald Wallace, who was also named one of the 27 American players that make up the US National Team (will compete in 2012 Olympic Games).  Overall, the game was well worth the $10 and the drive down, and we were able to see some of the best basketball the NBA has to offer!

Well, we all know that last weekend was one of the most watched television events in history–Superbowl XLIV (Thats 44 for those of you who have to look it up, like I did).  On Sunday evening when 6:25 pm rolled around, Gardner-Webb students, like most Americans, were warming the couch cushions preparing to enjoy some good old fashioned football between the New Orleans Saints and the Indianapolis Colts, as well as some of the year’s best commercials.  While the commercials were without a doubt sub-par compared to previous years, the game proved to be as exciting as ever.  The two teams took the field in Miami and played one heck of a game.  Both teams had their share of big plays and mistakes, and at the end of the game, the Saints came out on top with their first Superbowl title in Franchise history.  And while the outcome of the game wasn’t quite what I was hoping for, it was definitely a game to remember.  Granted, it didn’t have the dramatic game winning David Tyree or Santonio Holmes type plays that the past two Superbowl’s have donned, but to see a team from a city that has been through so much in the past years take home the trophy was truly worth it.  So until next year, congratulations New Orleans.

So everyone knows that every now and then, class, dorm life, studying, etc. can get as boring as watching grass grow.  So what do you do to counter that, you ask?  Youtube, of course!  The popularity of the video sharing website is higher than ever, and what better way to battle boredom than enjoying your favorite videos?  Below I’ve listed my recent top 5 favorite videos (in no particular order) and a little description of each one.  Hope you enjoy!

David After Dentist

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txqiwrbYGrs

Burnin’ Up (cover)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rY7_yl7VZfU&feature=related

Single Ladies gone wrong

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AN5YbfFszlI

Reporter turns ghetto in 3 seconds

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BUS6nKpddec

1. Keep your Hands Off my Mama  2. Keep your Hands Off my Doritos!!! (HD)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkY06viK3FU&feature=popular

The Quad after a snow in January 2009

A few days ago I was killing some time at work in my room checking the news, ESPN.com, and facebook when I stumbled upon the weather forecast for this weekend.  What I saw brought a smile to my face–SNOW!  According to the weather channel, most of Western North Carolina will be under a winter storm warning starting Friday around midday and on through Saturday evening.  Here in Boiling Springs, we are supposed to have anywhere from 3-5 inches of snow, which is leaving the majority of the students on campus anxiously waiting for the winter weather.  For the past 3 years of my time here at GWU, there has been at least one snow day per year, and hopefully this pattern will continue on through the rest of the winter!

Gardner-Webb University was honored this week, being named one of America’s 100 Best College Buys according to Institution Research & Evaluation Inc.  This recognition not only highlights our University’s stellar level of education, but also brings to light the affordability of the tuition and other costs of being a student here at Gardner-Webb.

“We are delighted to receive this national recognition. This honor represents our desire to control cost, which is considerably below the national average, to our students while ensuring our academic reputation is growing and vibrant,” said Mark Hughes, vice president of enrollment management at Gardner-Webb. “There are not many Christian institutions in Higher Education that can offer their students seven nationally accredited academic schools and programs and division one athletics at such an affordable price.”

For me personally, knowing that our school has been recognized as one of the top schools in the nation when thinking about the “bang-for-your-buck”, and really makes me somewhat proud to be a part of this university.  Hopefully, Gardner-Webb will continue to build and grow as an institution so that future generations of students can enjoy the same quality (if not better) education that I have had the privilege of receiving here. 

In light of the recent earthquakes in Haiti, students across Gardner-Webb’s campus are coming together to make a difference for those suffering in the disaster-stricken country.  Yesterday, several students officially organized a benefit concert, described by the organizers as, “A night of of music where our community can gather to pour out our prayers, love and support for Haiti. All money raised will go directly to providing care and support for the victims of Haiti through New Missions.” Mainly advertised through facebook.com,  the concert already has a large portion of the campus committed to helping however they can, whether it be through organization, endorsing, or simply attending.  The price of admission will be $5 at the door and all proceeds will go directly to the New Missions Haiti fund.  The concert will feature several student bands (The Appalachian Heroes, The Unworthy Beloved, Mortimer Rex) and several other well-known artists from the NC area [Jeremy Current (http://www.myspace.com/jeremycurrent) and Rory Tyler (http://www.virb.com/rorytyer)].  The concert will also feature video interviews of several students on campus from Haiti/that have Haitian ties who have been directly affected by the earthquake.

Though this disaster has in such a short amount of time virtually destroyed an entire country, it has also caused people around the world to unite to try and provide help in the name of humanity…even in a place as small and unlikely as Cleveland County, NC.

For more information on the concert:  http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=262801238433&ref=mf

For more information on providing support through New Missions:  http://newmissions.org/Earthquake/tabid/292/Default.aspx

Hello again.  It’s been a while since I last updated this page, but have no fear–I’m now back for good for my last semester at Gardner-Webb.  We just completed our first full week of class yesterday, and I can honestly say this is going to be my favorite semester yet.  The courses I’m taking are about as fun as classes can be, especially my video editing class.  In this class, we are required to come up with ideas for a dramatic short film or documentary (minimum of 15 minutes) that is relevant to today’s society.  It should prove to be one of the most fun classes I’ve taken here at GWU.  So much is already happening here at school for the start of the spring semester.  This weekend, we are having the Miss Gardner-Webb Pageant and two home basketball games against Winthrop University men’s and women’s teams.  Last weekend, the school sponsored a casino night on campus and also held a free bowling and movie night at Starmax in Gaffney, SC.  While taking advantage in this free event, some friends and I saw the new hit movie “Avatar” in 3D.   Let me just say that I don’t think I’ve had a better movie theater experience in my life!  I highly recommend going to see this film, especially in 3D, before it is released out of theaters.

I’m definitely looking forward to this semester and making my last months of being a college student the best that they can be.