Caught on Campus: Living up to potential gives meaning to this student’s life
Utah Statesman: How long have you been slacklining?
Greg Wilson: I’ve been doing it for about two years. It’s really a lot of fun. I like to bring my homework with me as I’m slacklining, so I can do homework and if I get too stressed from it, I can just slackline to relieve the stress. It’s great.
US: What are some of your other hobbies, besides slacklining?
GW: I like mountain biking, extreme unicycling – jumping over stairs on my unicycle and riding high, narrow curbs, things like that. I also like snowboarding, guitar, writing songs and building things.
US: Do you ever unicycle on campus?
GW: Only when no one is around. I usually do it in the afternoon when everyone has gone home.
US: What’s your favorite class?
GW: My optimization class – it’s part of my major.
US: What is the most bizarre dream you have ever had?
GW: I had a dream that my parents were stolen and put into another dimension, and I had to go through different dimensions to save them. It was pretty crazy.
US: What’s your biggest pet peeve?
GW: When people talk bad about other people and criticize other people. Also, when people eat with their mouths open and you can hear it.
US: Are you a Facebooker?
GW: I have an account, and I check it once in a while, but I never really post anything. I mostly use it as a way to keep up with friends who don’t live in Logan.
US: What was your favorite show you liked to watch growing up?
GW: The “Andy Griffiths” show – loved that show. That and “Roadrunner.”
US: Why did you choose to go to USU?
GW: Well, the school has a good engineering program, which was what I was going to go into, and plus I got a full-ride scholarship. You can’t really argue with those two things. Plus, it just felt right. I love Logan.
US: What kind of car do you drive? What’s your dream car?
GW: I drive a Honda Civic. My dream car would be a Range Rover.
US: If you could have any animal as a pet, what would it be?
GW: If I could have any animal and it wouldn’t kill me, I’d have a tiger. It would be sweet if I could ride it, too. No one would mess with you if you had a tiger.
US: Do you speak any languages?
GW: I speak Cebuano, which is a language they speak in the Philippines. I learned it when I served an LDS mission there.
US: What was the last movie you saw and how did you like it?
GW: The last movie I saw was “Avatar.” I really liked it a lot. I liked how it puts you into a different world.
US: What is your favorite song at the moment?
GW: “Hallelujah” by the Canadian Tenors.
US: Do you have any phobias?
GW: I’ve always been kind of afraid of heights, which is weird because I’m always finding the highest thing that I can jump off of.
US: What would you want your last meal to be?
GW: I’d have a medium-rare steak with mashed potatoes on the side and apple pie for dessert.
US: For you, what is the most attractive quality in a girl?
GW: Well, looks definitely set a girl apart, but her integrity and spirituality is what makes me actually talk to them. There are a lot of pretty girls, but when they have integrity I rarely pass up the opportunity to talk to them – it’s like I’m drawn to them.
US: If you were stuck on a desert island and could only have one person there with you, who would you want it to be?
GW: Probably my dad. I could see that as actually being kind of fun. We like to talk a lot and we go camping a lot. Plus, I trust him with my life more than anyone else.
US: What’s the best advice you’ve ever gotten?
GW: My dad gave me some good advice about maximizing my potential in life. He read me a poem called “Invictus” by William Earnest Henley and it really hit home for me. I learned from his advice that we can either set goals to really make a difference or just sit on the sidelines. So now every day I set goals so I can maximize my potential. I’m always trying to excel in ways that don’t seem possible and make them possible, which is why I do things like slacklining and unicycling. I take a goal that seems challenging and then accomplish it.
US: What are your plans for the summer?
GW: I’m staying here in Logan and do research here at USU for the physics department. Hopefully, I can do some fun things like mountain biking over the summer, too.
US: What makes you happy?
GW: Knowing that I’m living the life that I’m supposed to live. Living up to my potential.
–alison.ostler@aggiemail.usu.edu