I t all started, oddly enough, during the height of my French New Wave obsession. I was draining Godard and Truffaut films like diner cof- fee on a rough Sunday morn- ing. These are films that are compact, usually only an hour to an hour and 20 minutes long, and action-packed with a capital ACTION. High energy: car crash- es, shootouts, existential shout- ing matches about one’s place in society, infidelity and barely any plot whatsoever. One could tell Jean-Luc drank a healthy amount of caffeine while on set and writ- ing scripts. I watched a movie entitled ‘Le Mepris’ (Contempt) four or five times, completely enthralled by the vices of the French moving picture. This was a venture I took on alone. Friends — who weren’t that into film in general — weren’t going to sit down and watch a French one, that was for sure. Friends who did thought I was slightly pretentious in my selections, which was sort of understandable. I didn’t care. I just kept renting. Finally, after walking into my apartment with another five movies of the francophonic per- suasion, a roommate decided to ask me where I’d been obtaining and obtaining said films. I said, “Askwith, man. I call it Five-Movie-Friday. They’re not due back until Monday at mid- night. Isn’t that sweet?” Outwardly not as amazed as I thought he should be, he merely blurted, “What is Askwith?” “It’s the movie and media library in the UGLi. It’s free too. They have everything and a lot of it is on Criterion so you get all the essays and side stuff too. I joke all the time that I’m going to get my tuition back in movie rentals!” Don’t worry, I’m aware of everything that’s wrong with this joke. Then, my roommate made a most deep and existential inqui- ry (I think the most mind-alter- ing that he’s ever relayed to me in our brief time living together). He said, “Why is it called Ask- with? Like, what are you ‘asking with?’ I don’t get it.” Truly, I was stumped. I knew it was only one word. Askwith. What does that mean, though? Like so many of you would while sitting on the couch on a Friday night, I Googled it on my phone. It turns out Askwith was named after the man who sup- plied the funds that made the media library possible, Bert Ask- with. Sadly, Bert Askwith recent- ly passed away at the lofty age of 104 on June 1, but his accom- plishments in life were lengthy. He was a University alumni and an editor of this very newspaper back in 1931. He started a trans- portation company in 1928 called Campus Coach Lines that helped University students get home during school holidays. Bert, what a familiar name, I thought. Yes, Askwith’s contri- butions also helped create Bert’s Cafe in the UGLi where I just stopped to buy a coffee before I wrote this column on a library computer. With much gratitude, I am feeling Bert’s impact on the school with every sip. But this was only the first domino to fall. Soon, every build- ing on campus was subjected to this train of revelations and enlightenment. These words we use every day to meet up with our friends or to direct strang- ers looking for the spinning cube, these words are names of people who actually lived and more often than not, attended the Uni- versity, just like us. The light bulb is popping on. This may seem like a trivial or obvious observation, but it was shocking at the time, if not only due to the frequency with which I utilized these titles. Tappan, Angell, Haven, Hutchins, Hatcher, Shapiro and Duderstadt were all presidents of the University. Burton Tower is named after President Marion LeRoy Burton. William L. Clem- ents made his fortune supplying equipment for the construction of the Panama Canal. Stephen S. Clark Library is named after the man who co-invented the manometer having dual pressure sensors (which kind of sounds to me like some sub-surface weap- onry wielded by Spongebob super villain Man Ray in a battle against Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy.) These are just the things I know. But please forgive me. I wasn’t even at the University when he got the patents for these inven- tions. For so many of these other honorable people, I wasn’t even born yet. Neither were my par- ents or grandparents. So, this is more than a fun fact. This is the unveiling of the pre-me history that surrounds us. Or at least a history of some sort. When you tell me something new about the library — a place where I spend so much time, that’s a part of so many of my stories, that’s now a part of who I am — the information is going to matter. It will strike my interest. While it’s such a good time to acknowledge the historical process, I must admit that I’m fond of going the opposite way, too. The brightly-lit future. The future of me, in particular. I don’t think it is at all unreasonable to spend time with the successes of all these brilliant people and then to reflect on one’s own path- way and journey in life. I can see myself now. I have no idea where my obsessions with the vices of French New Wave and laugh out loud oceanic animation will lead me, but I’m sure it will be to a very extraordinary accomplish- ment worth millions. Then I, little old me, can give back to the place that made me who I am. I will most likely contribute towards a theatre or an audito- rium. Sparkman Auditorium. Or better yet, a whole complex full of Sparkman auditoria that thousands of freshman will take chemistry finals and fall asleep in during their Introduction to Linguistics courses. Maybe an improv group on campus will host a Friday night roast of who- ever the current president is. The future can make it grandi- ose and ornate or minimal and modern. I’m really, honestly sure I will love it either way. — Elijah Sparkman can be reached at esspa@umich.edu. 5 Thursday, June 18 2015 The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com OPINION —Reality television star Donald Trump said on Tuesday, June 16, during his presidential candidacy announcement. “ NOTABLE QUOTABLE I will be the greatest jobs president that God ever created.” CONTRIBUTE TO THE CONVERSATION Readers are encouraged to submit letters to the editor and viewpoints. Letters should be fewer than 300 words while viewpoints should be 550-850 words. Send the writer’s full name and University affiliation to melikaye@umich.edu be exciting and personable and connect to a large group of people without becoming tired from the overstimulation of large social gatherings or dealing with small talk. Now, intro- verts can be more visible and are able to create online communities. Some of the most popular YouTubers are introverted, such as Hank and John Green. They can cre- ate bridges between themselves and others without having to go through small talk. They can talk about things they are passionate about and acquire a fanbase of individuals who are passionate about the same things. Similarly, people can utilize forms of social media, like Twitter or Tumblr, to express their ideas to a large group of people, which tradition- ally would’ve been more difficult. It is pos- sible, that without these platforms, people would overlook influential introverts, as it often still happens in the work- place, class- rooms and other social situations. So maybe I will never be good at small talk or be the life of the party, but that’s okay, because if you listen really closely, I’m hilarious. — Rabab Jafri can be reached at rjafri@umich.edu. FOLLOW THE DAILY ON TWITTER Keep up with columnists, read Daily editorials, view cartoons and join in the debate. Check out @michigandaily to get updates on Daily content throughout the day. They can create bridges between themselves and others without having to go through small talk. ELIJAH SPARKMAN Inspired by history —Rep. Lisa Posthumus Lyons (R-Alto) on her bill which would allow absentee voting for any reason in Michigan. “ We should give all voters a convenient way to have their voices heard on Election Day.”