Charles Nailen/The Hoya
Sport: Swimming
Events: 200yd, 500yd, 1,000yd, 1,650yd Freestyle
Hometown: Shreveport, La.
High School: Loyola College Prep
School/Year: COL ’06
Majors: Government/English
Minor: Philosophy
High School Highlights: Captain of swim team junior and senior years . State Champion in the 200yd and 500yd freestyle senior year . Member of the Louisiana All-Stars junior and senior years . Member of National Honor Society.
Georgetown Highlights: Holds the school record in the 200yd, 500yd, 1,000yd and 1,650yd freestyle . Placed first in the mile and third in the 200yd at the Northeast Conference (NEC) . Placed second in the 200yd and 500yd in the ECAC . Named to the Big East All-Academic Team.
When did you first start swimming? When I was about 7 years old. I had grown up on the water, around a lake, and it was just kind of a family thing.
Biggest adjustment you had to make coming to college: Time management. Getting everything done with practice and five classes, and just having time for myself and everything else.
If you could be knowledgeable about any one subject, what would it be and why? I think human interaction – just between girls and guys, parents and kids, professors and students and that sort of thing. I would like to be able to read people’s reactions and know exactly what they mean.
If you could trade places with anyone for a day, who would it be and why? Jackie Kennedy because I think she was just classic.
One thing you can’t live without: A hairbrush.
Complete the sentence, “The world would be a better place if .”: There are more people like my roommates: Natalie, Stephanie, Rachel and Nikki.
If you were granted one wish, what would it be? To be happy for the rest of my life.
If you could travel anywhere in world where would it be and why? Iraq. I’m just really interested with their culture and the history. It just fascinates me.
Coolest place you have ever traveled to: I went to Saltillo, Mexico, for a missionary trip in high school. I acted as a translator for the doctors.
First concert you have ever been to: ‘N Sync with Britney Spears. It was amazing – she’s number one in my book.
Something that always puts you in a good mood: Going out to parties with my friends.
Describe your favorite photo: It was taken on the Fourth of July and it’s with myself, Natalie, Nikki and Rachel in front of Natalie’s house. We’re all dressed up in red, white and blue bikinis and we’re wearing roller blades because we had just gone skating. It was just a really great time and the expressions on our faces say it all.
The stereotype about athletes that annoys you most: That we’re all stupid and obnoxious.
What’s the most interesting job you have ever had? I worked at the Northwest Louisiana Food Bank for the past two summers. I did public relations and called representatives from different food pantries and made sure their plans were all up to date and standards. It was really hard and, at the same time, really interesting.
Favorite thing about Georgetown: I like the sense of family that everyone has and how welcoming people are.
Favorite thing about swimming: That you can train hard and continue to improve. There’s always something to do better. And it’s good alone time – with four hours in the pool, you can’t be talking to your teammates or anyone else. I like seeing the clock and seeing a better time or seeing that I broke a record. It’s just a real sense of accomplishment.
What’s going through your head when you’re swimming? It depends on the race. A lot of times I’ll sing – a song will just get in my head. If I’m trying to beat someone, then I’ll focus on them and not letting the person get ahead of me. I try to stay positive.
If you could possess any one superpower, what would it be and why? The ability to read people’s mind. I tend to think the best of people, and sometimes I wonder what’s really going on in their heads.
One word you would use to describe yourself: Quirky.
One word your roommates would use to describe you: Probably the same word, quirky.
Favorite childhood toy: I have a stuffed animal, Fluffy, who still sleeps with me. I can’t fall asleep without it, and I’ve taken it everywhere with me since I was 7. It’s a dog, and its head has been ripped off and had to be re-sewn.
Three magazines you’d have on your ideal coffee table: Cosmo, Vogue and Shape.
Favorite CD: Britney Spears – her latest one. And Alicia Key’s latest CD.
Best thing you know how to cook for yourself: I don’t really know how to cook. I think the best thing I can make is red beans and rice, right out of the box.
One class you would add to Georgetown’s curriculum if you could: I think the study of fashion review would be kind of cool.
Funniest Georgetown memory: I think almost any time I go out with my roommates, we always have a really funny experience or something funny happens to us.
Favorite way to relax: Watch TV.
Favorite TV Show: “The Bachelorette.”
One thing you have learned from swimming: To never give up. And I’ve learned how to compete and be tough.
Favorite place to order from in Georgetown: Bangkok [Bistro].
One thing you always do before a meet: I paint my toenails. And before big meets, we have to shave, so last week we shaved our arms.
Worst fear: Failure in anything that I try to do.
One thing you wished you had known before coming to Georgetown: What classes not to take.
What’s under your bed right now? We have all of our luggage.
