How did I get here?

Sometimes I just wonder how on earth I got to where I am. I mean, what choices did I make? what path did I take? to get me to Vancouver, British Columbia on this night and in this year... Don't get me wrong, it's totally cool! and of course I know how I literally got here, but boy is it weird sometimes. If you had told me back in T-town I'd be doing this...studying sound design...living in Canada...having lived in Florida...having gone to school in Missouri...well, honestly I'd have been totally game, but would have wondered how on earth I was going to pull THAT off! But I did!

Tonight I started wondering it after having gone to the school's bi-monthly karaoke (hit and miss at best...tonight was a miss) event and then attending a party my neighbor was having. He's in Sound Design too, but he's got experience with games. Until tonight, I didn't know it was composing music for games. He did stuff for The Hulk, and most importantly, all the rock tunes in Simpsons Road Rage!! I've never played it, but I know people who do, and that's just cool. One of the girls who's already graduated from sound...she has composed music (source music) for the tv show "Corner Gas" (I hear they may air that in the US, if so, check it out). Today we were learning how to record a band, and I was reminded of an awesome drummer in the high school class above me...and he is the drummer for Kelli Pickler these days! Never mind our program director who did the sound for Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, or the 2-D animation guy here who used to work for Pixar and did the concept art for Finding Nemo (ok, I don't really know this guy, but I intend to meet him). And granted, I've met other big name people like John Lasseter (my favorite "celebrity") and talked with several of the guys from NSYNC...and all of you less-famous folks I know who are equally talented if you ask me! I just think...I've known and run into some awfully interesting people in my life so far, and I hope it keeps going!

So...whatever winding road I'm on, that allows me to say "Hey, I know the guy who wrote that song in the Simpsons video game" or "Yup, I've actually driven the Disney World monorail" or "There was this one time, my friends and I drew chalk outlines all over the sidewalks to look like crime scenes...", I'm glad I'm on it. Thanks to all of you amazingly wonderful and interesting people for inspiring and amazing me in some way...and here's to many more adventures with you!