Some Memories of Eitan

So Eitan and I had the fortune to land first period together both semesters of senior year. He is probably the reason I did so horribly in my calculus class last semester (freshman year); I copied just about everything we did in class off of him. Classwork, tests, everything, and our friend Dora copied off him too. I remember the teacher walked to our table one time, looked at me, looked at her, looked at Eitan and said "Eitan, I really think you should consider taking the AP exam." It was that obvious how our table dynamic worked.

We had drawing battles where I'd draw a base, and Eitan would draw something attacking it. I would then draw something preventing the attack, and he counter that with another drawing, and so on. I don't think either of us ever won, but it was a fun exercise in futility.

Eitan's sense of humor was incredibly unique. It involved a lot of eye-bulging and hand motions at times, but no amount of words can get across how funny he was. Part of the reason Eitan was so cool is that he just didn't give a crap. His opinions were his own and there was nothing short of a slap bet that could sway him. Whenever he said something, it was either really legit or so sarcastic it was legit. He and I both immensely enjoyed the Jake and Amir skits on CollegeHumor; at his summer job he literally watched every episode up to date.

I wouldn't be doing justice to Eitan's memory if I didn't mention games. Eitan was not just a gaming consumer; he was a connoisseur. He got me addicted to Minecraft, introduced me to more games than I care to remember, and I don't think I ever beat him in a single game of Smash Bros. Melee. There was this really crude but almost mystically entertaining knock hockey table he made at his summer camp; we played that game intensely. He had the edge at first but I rose through the ranks, partially because I was so amped that there was a game I had a chance of beating him at. Eventually I got better but I think the real winner is the one who invents the game.

These are just a few things I remember about Eitan, and there's a million more things sitting in the back of my head that I can't remember at the moment. For anyone going through these stories, the only thing I would say is that Eitan was the man. He was funny and caring, intelligent and inventive. Sometimes I feel sad because I never got to grow up with him past high school, but at the same time I feel a whole lot more blessed than the people who never got a chance to meet this amazing guy, or the ones who met him and didn't see his utter coolness. As much as it hurts to be one, I'm a really lucky guy to have been friends with Eitan Stern-Robbins.