Matthew “Ratthew” Glod

“Damn you want to interview me, wow I feel like some sort of celebrity or even better. Should I feel special, because I know that I am” joked Matt. But that is nothing new as Matt likes to crack jokes all the time and at all times seems to be a very joyful person.

In June 2000, Katarzyna (Kathy) Bafia and Piotr (Peter) Glod found out that they were pregnant with their first child. At first they were very scared and surprised by the sudden pregnancy, since they were still engaged at that time. Fast forwarding nine months later, on a cold and very brutal morning of March 22, 2000, young parents, Kathy and Peter welcomed their first child, a son named Matthew Stefan Glod. He turned out to be on time and a very healthy, yet chubby baby boy. Since the day Matt was born, his parents knew that he is going to be a intelligent and smart kid.

Ever since Matt was little, he has received everything that his heart or dreams desired. Also he happened to be the first grandchild in his family so being spoiled was very much a part of him growing up. He got all the toys he wanted and all the love he could possibly need. Sometimes he received a little bit to much of both gifts and love that he became a rebellious child. All the time his rebellion actions would start with a temper tantrum and ending off on his parents showing him who's boss, but to no avail because the crying and screaming would again return when things would not go his way.

A year later the attention and praise that Matt was seeking quickly ended due to the arrival of his younger sister Natalia. Instantly Matt became jealous of his sister because he thought that his parents ignored him and gave his younger sister all the attention that he wanted to have. Instantly Matt's parents would reassure him that he and his sister are equally important. A few years later Matt grew up to be a very determined and intelligent young man that would make his parents proud.

At first when Matt started preschool it was not easy. The very first day his mom dropped him off he would not let go of her leg and would cry uncontrollably as he thought she was leaving him forever. As his mom mentioned it took quite some time for him to get used to school, but than that would not be the only problem. Matt being a son of Polish immigrants; he would be the only kid in preschool who spoke only Polish. And as one problem disappeared another one seemed to surface. Fortunately Matt being very intelligent since he was a baby he caught on very fast to the English language and became very fluent in Polish and English just at the age of four.

Seeing how Matt caught on fast in preschool gave a little sneak peek onto his future academic career. Moving from preschool to kindergarten teachers would complement Matt's parents that he is very bright and vocal and even can solve math problems at a 3rd grade level. Both his teachers and parents were surprised at his early math skills and they would try to figure out how he knew more advanced material at a young age. As time went by and Matt entered Argo high school he instantly was enrolled into AP classes. But Matt did not enjoy AP classes. He only viewed them as extra work and nothing that would actually help him learn or be beneficial in any way. After finishing sophomore year Matt decided not to take any AP classes only regular class that would allow him to focus on what he was interested in doing; such as cars and sports.

One thing that Matt truly shows a strong and devoted passion to is cars. Simply said cars are his life. That is the only thing that he can go on and on for hours talking about sharing what he knows trying to inform someone while others may find it tiring listening after a while. Matt's passion for cars has started about as early as he could speak and walk. But he can really thank his dad for passing down the passion of cars down to his son. Years back when Matt's dad recalls having a bit of down time before his family grew he would always invest his time and money into a car. Often times the cars would end up being very fast and loud which sparked some sort of interest and curiosity in young Matt. Even though he was very young and could not physically help his dad yet he tried to by bringing one tool at a time; which his parents would find adorable.

Fast forwarding a few years later and young Matt soon turning 18, he has now purchased his own project and dream car a Mazdaspeed 3. Working on cars and learning a few tricks from his dad has clearly paid off. And his passion for stronger and faster seems to be growing more and more and you are able to see how it is showing as you look onto his car. He would always mention how he wanted his sports car to sound mean and aggressive. Since he does work every day of the week, his mind is set to tuning his car to making it loud and aggressive, there is no doubt in anyone's mind that he will not achieve his goal.

Another thing Matt is very passionate about the sports he played. During sophomore year of high school Matt made it to Argo boys varsity swim team and was surprisingly extremely good at that sport. Both of his parents were extremely proud as he got first place awards and even beat a few records in his school. He was extremely devoted and at each practice and swim meat it was obvious that he had his mind set and his head in the game. He would always say “I am trying to beat my own records, not someone else's because if I improve that means I am doing something right”. His devotion would always be very empowering and also shocking to many due to the fact that many teenagers do not devote to anything, only changing their mind as fast a the wind blows. Also Matt happened to be very talented in track. At first his talent would not show and he found it rather difficult to keep up with others and running over hurdles at practice. There were many times that he felt like quitting because he did not feel good enough and also he did not feel that he is beating his own records. But like always his devotion has taken over the best of him. In order to achieve his goal he would come home after track practice and still have enough energy to run around his street to boost his stamina. And surely with time he did get better and once again would get first place awards. Amazingly his mom said it is not devotion it is his ego that he has to be better and good at everything rather than trying to be your best.

Being only 17 years old Matt does very much understand the meaning of a dollar. Now a days it is very hard to find a teenager who is willing and able to work every single day of the week, maintain good grades and still be able to understand the value of money without blowing it on pointless things like practically all teenagers do. His first job started off as being a lifeguard at the Burbank Water Park where he would vocalize that his jobs is very special because he gets to save lives. Also he would constantly mention on how his job is so simple that all he needs to do is blow a whistle and yell at kids who are fooling around.

Life guarding being a summer job only, Matt now works at Best Buy as a PC specialist. At first he started off as a cashier and being intelligent as he is he was quick to move up a position as short as six months. But unfortunately that position came with a huge burden of long work hours that would soon take a toll on him. Matt still being a senior in high school has found it difficult working over 30 hours and as the holidays approached his hours only increased. Soon he found himself working every day and falling terribly behind in school work and grades. Being tired with working and trying to maintain school work Matt told his managers that he is going to Poland for two months and he needs to quit. The managers understood what he has told them and they informed him that as soon as he comes back from his trip, they will welcome him back as soon as he is ready to work. A few months later instead of decreasing his work load he found himself a job at T Mobile and still is stuck with daily work. As Matt always says “The hustle don’t stop, the grind don’t stop, hustle is real, grind is real”.

One thing Matt would always mention is how he admires his dad, Peter. He admires him for pretty much everything he does but mainly for the type of person he is. He loves his dads passion for cars, motorcycles and jet skis. But mainly he said he admires his dad’s sense of humor. Matt always would mention how even at the toughest of times his dad would make u bend over in laughter and tears because it would be impossible to hold a straight face. Also he said when I turn 45 like my dad I want to have a loving family, his favorite cars and most importantly a sense of humor and kids of his own that might admire him as he does his dad.

Glod, Matthew. Personal Interview. 9, February 2019.

Glod, Katarzyna. Personal Interview. 9, February 2019.

Glod, Piotr. Personal Interview. 9, February 2019.