Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Now the Real Life Questing Begins..

I've waited for this moment my whole life it seems. As of the end of this week I will be completely finished with my collegiate undergraduate program at the University of Hartford.

Now, to say that everything went according to plan would be an outright lie. As you may know, I lost my car in a flash flood at the beginning of my second to last semester. But despite the immediate heartbreak, it was a rewarding experience because it reminded me that the things that matter the most in life are often the those we tend to take for granted. As a result, I gained a better appreciation for the people and hobbies that truly define me as an individual. Here's a picture of my last Spring Fling with co-talent and on-camera personality of STN Channel 2 Ben Wilcox.


Above all, this year has been a bout of tremendous emotional growth for me in terms of channeling my inner most fears through my artwork. Looking back, it had been really difficult for me to reflect on my childhood as well as the affect that video games and the internet have had on my existence. Getting an 'extra life' was the best thing that ever happened to me - I'm glad I stuck around. Hell, I'm not perfect, nor will I ever be, but what spawns my drive is something much more powerful and bigger than myself - it's a message. So if I get a chance at something; at making a difference, speaking out, doing something with my life, I want to be damn sure I'm ready to talk about it.



"Head First" was the series that allowed me to do this. Living the majority of my life on as much medication as I was prescribed was something I used to be ashamed of. It was something I kept secret from my friends, coworkers, even some family members. But everything changed April 28th, at "The Object Strikes Back"Senior BFA Photography exhibition. I came out, so to speak. It was one of the scariest most stressful things I've ever dealt with - but with my parents and friends there to support me, I can say I've never felt so proud. Read my artist statement, or buy a print here.

This past Sunday was also my last day at GameStop. I don't know if I'll ever go back to working retail, but I will always love the constant discussions, and banter that was evoked on a daily basis by my coworkers. I LOVE YOU 206. Perhaps this was why podcasting came off as so natural to me. Ultimately it's something that I would love to get back into.. invite me on your show sometime. We'll talk games.

With my birthday, having just passed May 10th, I think it's pretty safe to say that graduation, along with the booming of my new business, has and will be the greatest gift of all. That, and spending the day with my parents, singing karoake with my friends and ending the event with some Minecraft on XBL. Mission accomplsished. Thanks for the amazing DeadPool themed birthday card Shaun Callahan! You rule with the power of a thousand suns.

So that's that. Who knows where the road leads from here; but I like to think the phrase "when one door closes, another one opens" holds some power. Cheers to all the new opportunities and life achievements I have yet to unlock!

Love and bullets, Bakes

1 comments:

Keith Nieves said...

It's pretty cool reading up on your journey as a gamer, artist and as a person. It's also just as awesome to see that there are people in the industry that have that passion. Thats one thing I feel any industry (specifically gaming) could use more of. With people like you coming out of the "collegiate gate" I can definitely look forward to more years of passionate people being involved in games passionately.

Here's to looking forward to new challenges and all those crazy story lines!

-Keith

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