Question: Swimming comes with some early a.m. practice times as part of the deal. What do you use for an alarm clock? What is the sound you wake up to?
Melissa Wallace: It's nails on a chalkboard that wake me up in the morning -the most obnoxious, loud sounding alarm you will probably ever hear. It's the only way I can roll myself out of bed at 6:30 in the morning.
Q: Why do feel the TCNJ swim program has been so successful recently?
MW: We have a team that not only has depth, we have extremely talented swimmers. Each year, the freshman class keeps getting stronger and stronger. Coach Harnett does a great job with recruiting and this has had a large impact on the team as a whole. We also have versatility when it comes to the lineup for meets because of how many good, talented swimmers we have. Also, we mesh well together. We know how to have fun, both in and out of the pool and that has impacted our success greatly.
Q: What do you think makes a good professor a good professor?
MW: Good professors know how to make things fun. I had a professor spring semester of my freshman year for my Intro to Professional Writing class that joked around with us, gave us days off when we got our work done, and created fun, interesting projects throughout the semester. With that, you not only listen to the professor, you want to listen to the professor.
Q: What about writing do you enjoy the most and how do you hope to use it in the future?
MW: Writing has always been a passion of mine since I was younger. I used to write corny poems in elementary school and give them to my friends and family. Some people are born talented at a sport or have a genius IQ, I have a talent and way with words. I have a knack for putting words together and making them sound unique and sophisticated, which is ironic because I'm one of the most immature, unfledged person you will probably ever meet. My goal is to eventually work for a public relations/advertising company in hopes of writing press releases, media copy, etc. for the company. It would be great to work in the city, but I'll take anything I can get.
Q: Even the best of friends and family (or roommates) can have some annoying habits. Can you share one that you have to deal with?
MW: Obnoxious chewing. I can't stand when people chew really loud. I don't know what it is that irks me so much, but it gets to me. I can't put it out of my head because it's the only thing I hear if I am in a quiet room. Maybe it's the munching or the crunching, or the slurping. Like when I'm sitting in class, taking a test or attempting to listen to my professor, if someone is crackling and popping their gum, it's a distraction, and it kinda makes me want to pull my hair out at times.
Q: If TCNJ campus could add one feature of your choice, what would it be?
MW: A Taco Bell, Wendy's, or McDonalds. I LOVE fast food. I also hate driving. So having one of those right on campus would make life so much easier.
Q: What has been the best concert you've ever been to?
MW: Bruce Springsteen by far. I have been to four of his concerts and I can't wait to go to the next. The atmosphere is great, even in the way back of the Meadowlands Complex, where my nose heavily bleeds. He's been around for a long time and he still knows how to put on a great performance.
Q: Tomorrow you win a game show prize earning you $10,000 that you must spend and a trip to anywhere. Where are you going and how are spending your wad of benjamins?
MW: That's a hard one. I would either go to someplace really tropical, like the Cayman Islands and spend a week laying by the beach and the pool, or I would go to Europe - visit Ireland, Rome, and Paris. I'm Irish, so it would be great to visit Ireland and eat some real Irish food. Rome I see in movies all the time and I just want to go and experience what it is like for myself. And Paris, the shopping. Like any girl, I love to shop and Paris is the center of it all.