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At nearly 40 years ol, I didnt think i was ever going to go back to school. After being in the classroom for the past two years, i couldnt be happier with my decision. My thirst for knowledge has always been there, but only now am i doing something with it. What i had been missing all this time was the structure of the classroom and someone more knowledgeable than me to tap into. Even though I have nearly reached the end of my degree, Im not done yet. I'm excited for the future. Remaining a student in life at all times is one of the best ways to stay young. Im excited to learn about history , which I love, and to continue to use this opportunity to get as much from school, now that Im truly engaged and paying attention.

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Richmond, Virginia is where I was born and spent most of my life. Its a beautiful city with a rich of history and many things to do. My family has been in Virginia since the 17th century and most of them still live in and around that area today. Even though Richmond is an old city, when speaking of the United States, it seems to be growing faster now than it was when I was growing up. Since it wasnt coming up fast enough for me when I was younger, I decided to hit the road.

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I knew that I wanted to go somewhere warm, and while I didn't get far, it was a step in the right direction. I spent less than a year renting a condo in Corolla, NC. It is the Northern most town on the Outer Banks. With only one road in or out, and this being the end of it, it was very quiet most of the time. Looking back, I would love the quiet, but at the time, I wanted more.

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Miami Beach was the next stop, and it was everything youd think it would be. The music, the people, the lifestyle, it was exactly what i was looking for. I worked in hospitality, bartending at a rooftop hotel. Live music has always been my passion, but since i dont play any instrument, I would go to as many concerts as i could. In Virginia we were close to a lot of big cities. It wasnt that bad to drive to New York or DC, but in Miami, the music came to me. I spent 4 years living and working in Miami Beach, but while beach burned bright, it burned out fast, and I was ready to take it down a notch.

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The East coast was out, it was time to try out the other ocean. I lived in a very small town about an hour North of San Francisco. We would go into the city quite a bit, but we lived in a very rural little town and didn't see too many people unless we drove in. I loved it out there. The weather was amazing. Coming form the hot and humid tropics of South Florida to the crisp morning on the San Francisco Bay, it was night and day. I still dream of that cool mountain air. California was always supposed to be temporary. A few weeks turned into several months, and before I knew it, I had been there almost two years. The time had come to get where I was going, and where id stay for longer than any other place since i'd left home.

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People always ask me why I moved to Austin. I never did have a real good reason, other than warm weather and plenty of things to do. "The live music capitol of the world," or so it used to be called. I hardly do anything but work nowadays, that and school. I thrived for the first couple of years in Austin. I was out there livin'. I took advantage of everything this town had to offer. I didn't know it at the time, but I was part of the problem. Theres just too many damn people here. One miraculous thing did happen, I met the love of my life here in Texas. She is a schoolteacher from Madrid, Spain. Neither one of us had plans to stay in Austin, and now here we are ten years later. We pretty much keep to ourselves these days, quietly planning our next move. Its not clear yet whether we will remain stateside, or the more likely option, take the leap across the pond and continue our journey abroad.

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I started playing Disc Golf nearly 20 years ago, and I'm more and more passionate about it as time goes on. I compete at an amateur level here in Texas, but I have played all across the country and even abroad. I love to travel and I always make sure to play wherever we go. I have played at a course just outside the castle walls of Český Krumlov in the Czech Republic and on the slopes of the Haleakala volcano on the island of Maui. I never thought playing frisbee would take me to all the places it has, and I continue to be amazed by the wonderful places I get to play this game.

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Live music has been my passion for more than 20 years. Ever since I was old enough to go off on my own, I've traveled to see the bands that I love perform all across the world. Seeing my favorite bands play at bucket list venues like Red Rocks in Colorado has been an experience I treasure. There are bands I have seen over 100 times and i cant wait to go and see them again. Whether its a music festival with dozens of artists, a destination show in some remote location, or just a gig at a local venue here in town, I am always down to go and enjoy music the way I think it should be, in person.

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Mark Twain said, "One must travel to learn." Traveling is more than just a hobby, it is a passion. It is a passion that both my wife and I share. We are very different travelers though. She is a planner, and I like to fly by the seat of my pants. Of course, we ended up together. It surely makes for exciting adventures together. so far, we have traveled all over North America and Europe together and have only scratched the surface of where we want to go. in '22, my wife surprised me with an impromptu trip to Belgium for my birthday, it was one of the best trips of my life.

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Im in the process of a complete career change. After years in hospitality and sales, I decided to make a change. I am studying for a degree in civil engineering design. I started at ACC two years ago and I only have a few more classes to complete my degree in Civil CAD. Its been one of the best decisions of my life. I actually enjoy the work, I certainly do not miss the grind of sales or the busy night in service. sometimes I miss the fast paced work environment, but my current role certainly isn't relaxed. When theres a deadline to meet or a rush job that needs to get done, thats when I thrive the most. I guess thats all the years i spent in a hurry that have trained me to work well under pressure.

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While my family is far away in Virginia, I try to keep them close. I miss them very much and try to visit whenever possible. Only later in life do you realize what a treasure your family can be. I have been very fortunate to have a loving and supportive family and i try not to take that for granted.

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One evening in September, several years ago, I met the love of my life. She was a teacher from Spain here for a year on a work travel program in Austin. Neither one of us had ever planned on staying in Texas, and that was almost ten years ago. We have been through so much. So many ups and downs, and I couldn't have done any of this without her. It sounds cliche, but she really is the best thing to ever happen to me.

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My wifes family is so much more than that to me. I don't want to know a world where I cannot call on them when i need them or just to share a moment when we are able. The distance makes it extremely difficult to spend as much time with them as we would like. I treasure every moment we have together and they truly mean the world to me.

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Its been nearly twenty years since my dad passed away. I don't think it ever gets easier but time does dull the pain. I miss him so much. I was 18 when he died, so I did get to spend a lot of time growing up with him. He taught me a lot if things. There are just so many things that Ill never get to tell him, so many questions I'll never be able to ask him. He will never meet my wife, or hold my child, but I always think of him and I hope he would have liked who I turned out to be. I sure could have used his help a few times. I sure needed him to kick my butt a time or too as well. I love you Dad.

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Little dogs were never appealing to me. Now that I've had the pleasure of sharing my home with Bruno for the past 3 years, I think Ill have a hard time going back to a, "normal" size one in the future. Bruno found us one evening when we were suffering the loss of our previous dog, the love of my life, Koti. I didnt know it at the time, but he would help us in ways that I didnt know we needed it.

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Koti Was the first dog to truly captivate me. I hesitate to limit his impact to just being my dog. He was my partner. Our story started in California where he was a friends dog that I stayed with when i got there. They warned me that he wasn't the warmest dog and might not be friendly. It wasn't even 24 hours before we were inseparable. After a few days, it was as if he was no longer their dog. We went together everywhere. he was my best friend. My heart broke when they had to move away and took Koti with them. Many people encouraged them to let him stay with me. But he was their baby too and I understood. As luck would have it, about a Year or so later, I got a call out of the blue. They had a baby and things weren't going well with Koti and the child. They wanted to give me the right of first refusal and finally my dream had come true. The only problem, they were in Maine, and I was in Texas. They knew how much we meant to each other, and they drove all the way to Austin just to bring him to me. He didn't recognize me at first, but as soon as he heard my voice approaching it was just like we had always been. I loved Koti so much, I miss him every day.