Daily Lobo Spotlight

Daily Lobo: Are you pre-med?
Steven Gates: I’m hoping. I haven’t really decided. I’m pretty sure I’m going to go for my master’s and be a graduate student. I’m not sure if I’m going to take it to a doctorate. That kind of depends on how I feel.
DL: That’s still kind of more planning than most freshmen have.
SG: I think so, too. I have an uncle who’s a radiologist, and he describes his job a lot. It seems interesting to me, so that’s what I’m hoping to do. And there’s a high demand for them, I hear.
DL: Are you from here?
SG: From Albuquerque — born and raised.
DL: Do you live near here?
SG: No, I have a place on
Central and Tramway. I live with my girlfriend.
DL: What are you doing on your laptop?
SG: I’m working on a trip to New York right now. I’m looking for airport costs — flight plans, to be honest.
DL: Why New York?
SG: I’ve just always wanted to be there during New Year’s and see the ball drop.
DL: Aren’t there hundreds of thousands of people there?
SG: Yeah. It’s ridiculous, but I’ve just always wanted to go. It just seems really interesting, and, I don’t know, it seems really cool to me. It’s really different from here. I’ve been there once, and I love it. There are, like, two- and three-story McDonald’s there. It’s ridiculous and just really cool to go and visit.
DL: So you’re planning on just heading up for Christmas break?
SG: Yeah, for like five days and then come back.
DL: That’s kind of expensive isn’t it? Aren’t plane tickets going up?
SG: Yeah. (laughs) My dad is helping us out.
DL: You and your girlfriend?
SG: Yeah.
DL: Does she go to school here, too?
SG: Yeah, and she’s doing the IFMD program. It’s like that interdisciplinary film and media arts thing.
DL: Is that a cool major?
SG: Oh yeah, she loves it.