What weather can you not tolerate or even hate to endure? For Paint Branch senior Andrea Gill that season is summer. The hot, sweaty summer heat is the worst time of year for her.
Being sweaty feels nasty and uncomfortable, which is why the cold and feeling cold are preferable for Andrea. She says that the best part about winter weather is being able to wear clothes that cater to the cold. Baggy hoodies, warm-fitting attire, and overall clothing that feels snug make this her favorite season. The downside of Maryland’s climate, as far as Andrea is concerned, is that the snow washes away too quickly. As for what Andrea does with her family during winter, she says that it involves snowball fights and building snowmen.
When it comes to quality family time, especially in the winter, Andreas' family doesn’t waste it. Family time can include card games such as poker, casino games, and gambling. Andrea notes that her family moved to the United States from Central and South America so this type of behavior was probably not inherited from their roots. She says that the impact of them moving to the U.S. meant that they could sort of “mess” with money. Messing with money before her parents moved wasn’t an option. Her mom’s side is from Nicaragua and her dad’s side is from Peru, so when both families moved to the U.S, poker games, gambling, and other family-time games just became a big thing.
Coming from two different backgrounds, Andrea says that she can’t decide which one she feels is strongest in her. One person who does stand out is her cousin, Emily, from her dad's side. Andrea states, “She's probably the only girl I talk to about things”. It’s always good to have at least one person you can talk to about things in general and Emily provides that for her. Andrea gives a cool fact that in her mother’s country if you have a second cousin they are considered your aunt.
As for how Andrea is doing back in school and after surviving virtual learning, she says that her life feels like about an 8 out of 10, but thinking about life at its fullest form is blank for her. Not being able to have a set plan in the future. When Andrea is around people like her cousins, family, or friends, they all feel good energy and enjoy the presence of one another, which makes Andrea feel happy and excited, but when alone she feels as if she’s wasting her time.
Even though Andrea’s mind wanders when thinking about life at its fullest form, Andrea has a full clear view of what she wants to do after high school. Wanting to achieve her bachelor’s degree in computer science. Andrea wants to work in the technology industry. Even reaching beyond just to make a video game, Andrea was also thinking about moving into the writing field but doesn’t think it will make as much profit. As to wanting to work in the tech field, Andrea would want to be a game developer. Andrea doesn't mind working for someone. She feels that pitching in ideas and helping others in her dream job is good for her.
Andrea has a bright future ahead, with her humor and sense of knowing what she wants. She will make it far in life, even through the struggles and doubts. The world does not doubt that we have another future engineer in the making.
By: Amina Parks
