On March 6, The Spectrum Features editor Jacob Ryan Wojtowicz, a junior sociology and political science major, met Jacob Arthur Wojtowicz, a junior majoring in history and social studies education.
As children, the two went to the same local dentist, and even got their records mixed up because they have the same name. Despite knowing about each other for most of their lives, their first face-to-face interaction was an unscripted conversation in The Spectrum office, where they learned about each other for an hour and 15 minutes. They discussed their interests, as well as their similarities and differences and left the conversation believing that they had a lot in common — not just their uncommon, hard-to-pronounce name.
This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
Jacob Ryan Wojtowicz: Where are you from?
Jacob Arthur Wojtowicz: I’m from West Seneca, NY.
JRW: Have you lived there your whole life?
JAW: Yeah. I went to the West Seneca Central School District from elementary all the way to high school.
JRW: I went to Maryvale.
JAW: How do you pronounce the last name?
JRW: Woh-tah-vitch.
JAW: My family is — at least my dad’s side of the family — pretty strict with how you say the name. She’d [his mother] always got criticized on how she said “Vojtovich”. It’s like “Vojtavic”. I can’t even say it myself. It’s like “Vojtovich.” And they’re always super particular about how they say pierogi, too. I just didn’t say it the right way.
JRW: Do you have any siblings?
JAW: I am an only child.
JRW: I have an older sister. She’s 13 years older than me.
JRW: What’s your birthday?
JAW: June 23.
JRW: March 29.
JAW: So you’re the older one of us two?
JRW: What are your interests?
JAW: I have a lot of stuff. I’m in a band that we play a lot in Buffalo, just like local bars. Recently got back into it with my friends at UB, just like WWE and all that fake stuff. But it’s really fun. And then I also do boxing at a Ridgeway boxing gym in West Seneca. The music really keeps me occupied with the band.
JRW: I’m a political nerd. I like politics. I like writing about politics. For the past year, though, much of my time has been taken up by The Spectrum. I’ve devoted much of my time here. I’m a huge pop punk and emo fan — Blink, Green Day, New Found Glory, Jawbreaker.
JAW: I’m a huge fan of Blink personally. Did you go to the concert last summer?
JRW: Yes. You were there?
JAW: Yeah, I was. I like a lot of their old stuff, like “Dude Ranch” and “Buddha,” all their really old albums.
JRW: I’ve listened to everything they’ve ever put out. Who are your influences on your band?
JAW: The reason I wanted to start making music was the Goo Goo Dolls. I like their punk stuff from the early 1980s, and finding out they were from Buffalo. I was like, “I could play some of this stuff.” Blink-182 is actually one of my other big influences. I was listening to them a lot of the time. There’s an old Buffalo band, and I don’t think they play anymore, but they had one or two albums — Bold Folly. I really liked how they sounded. I kept listening to them, and then me and my cousin began writing music.
JRW: With the Goo Goo Dolls and Blink, are you sort of trying to find that middle ground?
JAW: Our genre is kind of like light punk. It’s like indie punk. Because I wouldn’t say it’s pop punk, because it’s not that light yet. But it’s really like a good mix between Goo Goo Dolls and Blink-182. A lot of melodies and power chords.
JRW: I was at the Goo Goo Dolls show in August.
JAW: I was also there.
JRW: I was really there for Dashboard Confessional. Another one of my favorite emo bands.
JAW: I only knew one Dashboard Confessional song because “Spider-Man 2” is my favorite movie. It’s the credits song, and that was one of my favorite songs of all time just because of that movie.
JRW: “Hands Down” is one of my all-time favorite songs. What’s your favorite Blink album?
JAW: “Dude Ranch.”
JRW: “Enema.”
JAW: That’s a good one. There’s a lot of good transitions on that album.
JRW: Would you say you had a song that changed your life or altered your musical tastes?
JAW: There’s a Goo Goo Dolls song called “Cuz You’re Gone.” It’s from their “Superstar Car Wash” album. It wasn’t my favorite song when I first heard it. I actually didn’t like it that much. And then I kept listening to the solo part and some of the melodies. And I was like, man, these guys made this while they were still living in Buffalo and they didn’t have that much money. Like, I could make a song this good, I think. And then from there, there was just like looking at the way songs were kind of structured. And then after that was a song called “Yes” by the Manic Street Preachers. And it was just kind of as beautiful. I’m kind of creating a list of my most inspiring songs — the way they’re structured.
JRW: “Going Away to College” was my song.
JAW: That’s a really beautiful song.
JAW: So here’s a really funny story. I was in my economics class, and I was turning in a test, and my professor — I forgot her name — but she goes, “Man, I really liked what you wrote yesterday in The Spectrum.” It was last semester. Right after that, I think they posted a picture of you — Jacob Wojtowicz and the whole bio. I sent a screenshot to my friends and said, “There’s another Jacob Wojtowicz at UB.” But then I thought about it — we went to the same dentist. They asked if I was born in March, and I said no. So they had both of us in their records.
JRW: So I’ve known about you probably since I was like 7 or 8. Throughout high school, I’d occasionally think about you and look you up. I had a teacher who thought I transferred because she saw your name on the swim sheet at West Seneca. I didn’t know you were at UB until I got an email about a year ago from a history professor who mentioned a paper you wrote.
JAW: Everyone called me Wojo in high school. Jake Wojo. That’s kind of what I go by now. Not a lot of people know my actual last name. Most people just think it’s Wojo. I would get called “Wojtoast” over the announcements.
JRW: What are some of your favorite shows?
JAW: I was literally walking here thinking you would ask me this question, but I always go back to “Family Guy” — turn-my-brain-off type thing. I'm currently watching “The Sopranos” and “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.”
JRW: A lot of people have told me I would like that show.
JAW: I think you would. It’s not super funny, but it’s very weird humor.
JRW: What season of “The Sopranos” are you on?
JAW: Fifth. I just hit the fifth season. The fourth season I thought was a little boring until the last episode.
JRW: I actually wrote a column about “The Sopranos” last year.
JAW: Watching shows recently got me into wanting to do some acting. My best friend Wayne — he goes to Villa Maria — and I’ve been doing a lot of his film projects for years. I usually play a comedy character. But I did some drama stuff in high school, and it was really fun to learn a script. He’s supposed to send me a script today for a serious role. I don’t know how that’s going to go because I don’t have a lot of time, but I’d like to try it.
JRW: When I was a little kid, that was my dream job — acting and screenwriting. I would direct things around my house and have my family act in them. I spent much of my childhood in my head, making up stories inspired by movies like “Star Wars,” “Indiana Jones” and “Harry Potter.”
JAW: So did you kind of just have to entertain yourself with your hobbies? Because that’s how it was for me. I did that mainly with wrestling figures — I would make up storylines. I was the audience and the booker. I would plan it out months in advance and write it in a journal.
JRW: So we really are a lot alike.
JAW: We really are.
JRW: If I asked somebody you went to high school with, how would they describe you?
JAW: I changed up a lot. When I was a freshman, I didn’t talk to anybody. I found a core group through my best friend Wayne, and he got me out of my shell. I started doing musicals, chorus and swimming. That’s where I found my main group of buddies, and we still hang out today.
JRW: Maryvale only has about 550 kids. There were maybe three or four friend groups in my grade, and I never really fit in. By senior year, I was pretty much checked out. College is a lot better — you can work on your own time. What do your parents do?
JAW: My dad’s retired, but he worked for the West Seneca Highway Department for a long time. My mom’s been a nurse her whole life. She started at Roswell Park, but she’s been at ECMC for a while. She’s looking to retire in the next three or four years.
JRW: My dad’s 57 and my mom’s 55. My dad’s a construction worker — a carpenter. My mother is a caregiver for my sister.
JAW: Our parents are actually pretty similar in age, similar in occupation.
JRW: What else haven’t we talked about?
JAW: Are you a big fan of cooking?
JRW: I love food. I don’t like cooking.
JAW: Food is great. I could go on for hours about food.
JRW: How much would you say we have in common?
JAW: Like Spotify blends — maybe 65% to 70%.
JRW: Yes. It’s uncanny. It’s eerie.
Jacob Wojtowicz is the senior features editor and can be reached at jacob.wojtowicz@ubspectrum.com
