Jesse Cool, Senior - Interview Conducted by Anna Chard and Phoebe Shin
Tuesday October 6, 2020: It is 9:50 am - The beginning of the school day! The sun is actually shining, and the birds are chirping (we think- we were actually inside so, upon reflection, we have realized that we can’t really attest to that). The mood is light, the backgrounds are top-notch (immensely successful color-coordination), and the Human of CPS makes small talk as we anticipate the year’s first student interview. I click record. “Welcome, Jesse.” The interview has begun…
Anna: What is your favorite place in the world?
Jesse: My whole family lives on the East Coast, so I live there for a month out of the year. A few years ago my parents just kinda started letting me roam New York City and Long Island, and if you draw a line from JFK airport to the end of Long Island to New York City and make that a triangle... that’s my region, my stomping grounds.
Phoebe: What did you want to be when you grew up, and what do you want to be now?
Jesse: I like designing things, so I used to be super into art and that kind of stuff. Now I'm moving toward math, which is a pretty weird trajectory. I never had a I want to be this or that phase; my parents are pretty laissez-faire with me, which I really appreciate, so I think I never felt like I needed to choose. I like order, so whenever I had a thing, I wanted my order, my organization. I’m a pretty organized person, and if I dont have my order, chaos ensues. To answer the question: I don’t know, but it’ll involve a fair bit of order.
Anna: Are there any teachers or people that have had an especially significant impact on you?
Jesse: I mean, all of the teachers are so good that I really can’t pick, and I’m serious about that. I’ll mention three. The first is Dr. C— she’s really great, and she reminds me of my mom. (Okay actually, I'll mention four). So Dr. C is smart and organized– she doesn’t say things that she doesn’t have to, which makes the things that she does say that much more important. Number two: Vic. I loved him so much; he was just my favorite— just such a cool guy. I admire how he did three different things: He was, like, on Wall Street and then went to medical school and then did something else, which is just so crazy. Jul is really compassionate and I admire that. Whenever I wanna see something through a more compassionate lens, I think, “What if I were this person?” I have a few people who I try to embody when I want to be nicer, and she is one of them. Last is Tetler, just because I have two moms, and I feel like Tetler is a good example of the new age of two moms like my parents.
Phoebe: What is the most interesting gift you’ve given or received?
Jesse: Okay… so my best friend really likes Reese’s peanut butter cups. At the beginning of this year I got him a 64 pack, which is roughly this big *hand gestures*. This was the beginning of quarantine, and I couldn’t see him because he was working, and I didn't want to cross contaminate. I was like, “When Connor comes back, I’m going to give him these Reese’s!” And I ended up eating all of them. Then I got another box, and that’s like 64 packs, which is 128 cups. And I ate half of the second pack which is 192 cups, I think. Crazy.
Phoebe: We’ve heard that you have a passion for coffee. Can you tell us a little bit about that?
Jesse: Yes! So I used to work at a little coffee shop. What I mean by that is it’s not Peet’s and not Starbucks. I think— going back to what I said about organization— that I like systems, whatever they are. You get to insert yourself into a system that people have been working on for a really long time, and you get to be a part of that, developing your own touches. And I like that, whatever it is that I’m doing; just because I want to be my own little special girl, I’ll develop my own things. And then the hours are super weird, too, so you get up really early to see the onslaught of tired people. You get to wake the neighborhood up, throwing caffeine at everyone. Anyway, I like to add the finishing touches. Coffee is a good place to do that.
Anna: Are you a city person?
Jesse: No, I’m not a total city person. I don’t have the energy for that. I don't like the possibility of having FOMO. Imagine being in college, trying to really hunker down and study and sacrifice some of the present for a better future, and you have the whole city around you telling you to have fun and to look at everyone else having fun. So, I’d say that the happy medium for me is somewhere like where I am now: In a town next to the city, where you can reach into the city when you need to.
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