Selina Gonzales

Glitter Cat Barista 2020

“And then coming here and everybody is just so likeminded that you get really comfortable and you're like "I am supposed to be here and I am a good representation for my group." 

I remember when I pulled my very first espresso shot on a real machine and I was like "Wooow! That's so beautiful and I've learned so much since then and it's, it's a passion of mine. I'm in love with coffee. haha!

I looked at the Barista competition as something I would have never been able to do, but I always thought it was really cool. I didn't want to dissappoint anybody and I was very nervous coming here. And then coming here and everybody is just so likeminded that you get really comfortable and you're like "I am supposed to be here and I am a good representation for my group." 

We're all nervous. We're all self-conscious. We're very anxious about it and. you know. we don't think that we can do it, but we can and we are! And I think that's really exciting. This has been a very empowering journey. I feel like coffee has genuinely saved my life. It has been an outlet for a lot of anxieties and stresses, depressions in my life and I have had something that I can focus on, and work hard, and be proud of.