MUNCIE, Ind. (NewsLink) -- One Ball State student is stacking up his talents in more ways than one.
Robert Weatherington is a junior dance and social work major and knows what it’s like to be busy. When he’s not in the classroom, he’s at the studio practicing what he loves.
“Right now, I have a lot of big grand goals. I would love to dance in a company, but through my social work major, I’d love to mix the two and do some dance movement therapy,” Weatherington said.
Weatherington’s path is nothing traditional. In fact, he’s earning two different undergraduate degrees, not just double majoring. However, that doesn’t bother him because he loves staying busy.
“I don’t like just sitting and being a person in a room and looking at a wall. Whenever I am just sitting, I like to start something; over time, I’ve just acquired a lot of unique talents,” Weatherington said.
One of those talents has become a little more than just a way to pass time. In fifth grade, Weatherington started cup stacking. No - it wasn’t stacking the cups up after they got out of the dishwasher. It was stacking for speed.
“During the winter in school when we couldn’t go outside, the gym teacher brought in some cups. It was probably 2008-2009, and after the week, I was the best in the class, and I just decided to keep going,” Weatherington said.
Now, he doesn’t just stack at home for fun. With a lot of practice and hard work, his “pass time” activity has turned into something a little bigger.
“I’ve competed at Junior Olympics 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, I couldn’t go to 17, and then 2018. So that is five different Junior Olympics,” Weatherington said.
Amidst all these awards, he still sees cup stacking as a way to relax as a college student. It never feels like a chore to practice, and he only stacks when he wants to. The ones who see Weatherington most in his element are his roommates, Adrian Alora and Sawyer Harvey, who appreciate the unique talents he brings.
“Robbie is a great guy. I’ve never met someone so quirky who I continue to learn something new about every day,” Alora said.
For his roommates, getting to see all he’s involved in keeps their days interesting, as well.
“He’s always doing something quirky, like Adrian said, and I’m pretty sure he could throw a video on the screen of him every day of the year, and it would never repeat. So, it’s always a surprise,” Harvey said.
What isn’t a surprise is that right now, Weatherington is still keeping busy. He’s in rehearsal for his next dance performance and practicing for his next cup stacking competition in February.
