By Joe Kourieh

Arts & Features Editor

Look at the person to the left of you. Now the person to the right. Do you know these people personally? Or are they complete strangers? Whatever the case may be, one thing is certain: these people are unique. Every one of them has their own stories, their own interests and their own secrets.

This includes junior psychology major Sarah Lipocky, who you may find right next to you sometime soon. A recent transfer from Mass Bay Community College, Lipocky is enjoying spending her time at FSU.

“The people are really nice,” Lipocky said. “And there’s a lot more to do here.”

Outside of school, Lipocky enjoys eating frozen yogurt, watching “The Office,” listening to hardcore and screamo music and going out with friends in her hometown of Medway, Mass., from which she commutes.

Lipocky professed her biggest peeve is boredom.

“I hate sitting at home,” she said. “I’m not an outdoorsy person though, so camping is totally out of the question.

“I have a shopping problem,” she added with a laugh.

However, of all the many things that Lipocky has bought over the years, nothing has rivaled her prized possession: her silver 1998 Volvo S70.

“It’s just a piece of crap – I couldn’t live without it,” she said. “263,000 miles and it’s still going. It just doesn’t make sense to me.”

Complete with stickers on the back and a plethora of mechanical ailments, the Volvo can often be seen sitting in the FSU commuter parking lots. Lipocky regards her trusty Swedish brick as a faithful companion.

“That was my first car – there are so many memories,” she said. “I’m gonna cry when I get a new car.

“Volvos kick ass,” she added.

Even more than her Volvo, Lipocky loves her best friend Meghan, whom she has been close to since middle school. The two have helped each other through their highest highs and lowest lows, such as when both girls lost close family members to lung cancer. The duo also shared an unforgettable experience together over winter break when they traveled to the Grand Canyon.

“It was incredible,” Lipocky said. “I’ve never felt so little but so important in my whole life.”

“Meg and I have done crappy things to each other sometimes, but we just don’t care,” she said. “We never fight. … We agree on everything.

“We’re both very ambitious,” she added.

Lipocky described how she views her youth as an opportunity to explore her options.

“I feel as though I could do anything,” she said. “I’m just living day to day.”

Although not a drinker herself, one profession in which Lipocky is interested is bartending, simply for the social aspect of it.

“I would like to do that because I love meeting new people,” she said. “A lot of people say I’m not approachable, but it’s not true. They say I’m bitchy, but I don’t see it.”

Lipocky emphasized that no matter what she does for a living, she wishes to travel extensively throughout her life. Her furthest trip so far, and the most important memory she has, was her trip to Italy, which she took as part of a dance team. However, the trip also acted as a tribute to her Italian grandmother, who passed away just before Lipocky embarked on the sentimental and cultural journey.

“She gave me two rings and said, ‘Whenever you look down at them, think of me,’” Lipocky recounted. “So I wore them every day in Italy. It was kind of an emotional trip.”

“I’d be nowhere without my friends and family,” she said. “I really think you should do what makes you happy and don’t let anything get in the way of that. … Don’t take people for granted. Because life is too short for that.”

“I don’t consider myself that interesting a person,” she added. “What you see is what you get.”

So if you find yourself near Sarah Lipocky, just remember: you’ve heard her story. And maybe it will be your turn.