RamStories:
An Oral History Project to Record the CSU Experience
Kevin (Interviewer) and Mustafa (Interviewee)
Watch the interview: Size: 3.877MB Duration: 5 Min 35 Sec
Kevin Derouin: "Where are you from? What's your name?"
Mustafa Dhaba: "My name is Mustafa Dhaba, and I'm originally from Ethiopia, but I came from there four years ago, so I graduated here."
Kevin Derouin: "Cool. Why did you choose CSU?"
Mustafa Dhaba: "I chose CSU because I like the atmosphere, and I like Fort Collins, and I like the people here, and I have a lot of friends here at CSU."
Kevin Derouin: "What do you want out of your experience at CSU?"
Mustafa Dhaba: "I can't say that I've had a lot of experiences since I got here today, but my experience was I met some people already here.I don't know, I'll see what my experience looks like."
Kevin Derouin: "What was your first meal on campus like?"
Mustafa Dhaba: "My first meal on campus was good because I like hamburger. Hamburger is my favorite food. I love hamburger."
Kevin Derouin: "What were your first impressions when you first walked on campus?"
Mustafa Dhaba: "I was very excited to see everybody, to get to see a lot of new people. I was kind of confused-I've never seen a lot of people in one building, so that confused me a little bit."
Kevin Derouin: "What do you miss about your home?"
Mustafa Dhaba: "My family and my back yard, and I miss my sister."
Kevin Derouin: "What would you tell your future self for advice?"
Mustafa Dhaba: "I'm going to tell myself not to party too much. I want to balance school and party equally. I don't want to grow up sooner than I have to."
Janet Bishop: : "This is Janet Bishop interjecting here. The two of you are roommates, right? So what dorm do you live in?"
Kevin Derouin: "We live in the basement of Braiden."
Janet Bishop: : "The basement of Braiden?"
Janet Bishop: : "So what's the basement of Braiden like? Is it light or dark or.?"
Mustafa Dhaba: "We didn't get a dorm, so we have to live [there] temporarily. There are like, five or six people there."
Janet Bishop: : "Oh, really?"
Mustafa Dhaba: "The room is kind of [indistinct] though. There's nothing in that room except paint."
Kevin Derouin: "There's just beds on one wall and some cupboards on one wall and desks. It's about twice the size of a normal room."
Janet Bishop: : "So is there a shortage of housing this year because there's so many students? Or did you just get poor luck-of-the-draw?"
Mustafa Dhaba: "We were late, so."
Kevin Derouin: "They told us that because of the time that we registered for housing that we'd be later."
Janet Bishop: : "So, Mustafa, you came here from Ethiopia four years ago?"
Mustafa Dhaba: "Yes, ma'am."
Janet Bishop: "Was it a total culture-shock to come to Denver, or did your family have friends here already?"
Mustafa Dhaba: "No, I just came here by myself. When I got here, I was kind of confused because back home, you see a lot of people walking. When I came here, I didn't see anybody in the street, all I saw was cars. And it seemed like the city was infinite."
Janet Bishop: "So does Fort Collins seem a little easier because there's less cars and people and stuff than Denver?"
Mustafa Dhaba: "No. Compared to Ethiopia, everybody has a car, so it's the same here too."
Janet Bishop: "So it's pretty busy?"
Mustafa Dhaba: "Yes, it's very busy. It's like Denver."
Janet Bishop: "And Kevin, you came from Arvada? Where is that? I'm still learning Colorado."
Kevin Derouin: "Arvada's right outside of Denver. It's not too far away, so I'm used to it."
Janet Bishop: "So, is it suburban overall?"
Kevin Derouin: "Yeah, it's just as suburban as Denver. I've been around Boulder most of my life. My dad works in Boulder."
Janet Bishop: "And you chose not to [go to CU].?"
Kevin Derouin: "Yeah, because I didn't like the atmosphere and people. The people were just completely different in Boulder. I have a friend who tells me that people who tend to like Fort Collins tend to not like Boulder, and people who like Boulder tend to not like Fort Collins, and I've found that that's true for most of the people I meet."
Janet Bishop: "That's interesting. Thank you guys so much."
END