Angelica Escobar’s Slightly Strange Life During COVID
To some people quarantine brought hardships and to others it brought time off from responsibilities; but to 20 year old college sophomore Angela Escobar, COVID 19 consists of coffee, yoga, homework, more coffee, and cats. Before the pandemic hit, Escobar had been living with her aunt so she would be able to commute to Whittier College. Soon after Escobar moved in with her aunt, her mother redecorated the room to accommodate her two cats: Ninja and Elle. Ninja a cat that is always hungry and Elle the cat that is an old cranky women.These cats were living a luxurious life. The room was filled with cats toys, they had beds, and even their own tv. It was cat paradise. That all changed when Escobar moved back home in March as Whittier College as a whole moved online.
While Escobar and the two cats currently share the room, she considers herself to be replaced. The cats are no longer living in her room, she is living in theirs. She even thinks her mom pays more attention to the cats than her! Though she considers that to be a good thing. Currently she has a few running theories as to why she was replaced by her cats. The main theory is because of her boyfriend. She said in a joking manner that it may be because she’s dating a white guy. She even stated he’s, “the whitest guy on earth. Jack Frost White.”
As of right now Escobar hopes to move out in the near future to reclaim what she lost. Her personal space. Though she doesn’t know what she will do, she currently has two options. Since the Aunt she lived with during the regular school year is getting married and moving away, she can no longer move back in and commute to Whittier College from there. The first option is to move in with her other aunt. Though this does not seem very appealing, as her other aunt is very strict. One rule being she is not allowed to be out of the house past 11pm. As a 20 year old college student this rule by itself seems like it could be a deal breaker. Her only other option, and the one she hopes works out, is finding an apartment with a friend. This seems like the ideal option, but during times of COVID being able to afford rent without a job can be tough.
While her life may seem slightly crazy at the moment, Escobar has more important things to worry about. She is vice president of Women’s Leadership Association, which is a club on campus. Her main goals as vice president is to help promote women in any way she can and try to get rid of the Patriarchy. She is very dedicated to the club and its beliefs and at one point in the interview began to chant “Men are trash.” Though this was clearly a joke, she wants to make the club an open space to everyone on campus, men and women alike. Another important thing going on in her life is her dedication to writing new stories on Whittier College’s Quaker Campus. She usually writes opinion pieces.
While Escobar’s current life may be similar to most people’s, besides being replaced by cats, that doesn’t make it any easier during this global crisis. Many are struggling in ways most people could never know. With the work ethics and commitments that Escobar has made it would be hard to believe that her life is easy. Like everyone else she is getting through COVID one day at a time.
