This goes out to BarnyardMama, who posed the following questions.  I wish I had this put together when I was in the running for "Best of..."!

Were you always a creative soul? 

I was always “different”.  I’ve always had a highly developed, yet frequently misunderstood sense of humor.  I was neither socially adept nor inept.  I never had a crowd, always several.  Sometimes, they were extremely different and opposed groups, and one couldn’t understand why I hung around with the other.  In my hometown crowd, I hung out on street corners, purposely avoiding adults.  My high school crowd was absolutely the “nice guy” crowd.  In another crowd, we frequented roller-rinks and the Rocky Horror Picture Show.  All three of these were at the same time.

On my own, I was something of a science geek.  Again, at home I was a relative “uber-geek”.  Then I got into computers and found myself to be a “quasi-geek” in that crowd.  I joined the sci-fi club at school, but they were a bit too far over the edge for me.  I remained in the computer club.  The absence of the first and the relative infancy of the second (it was 1982, folks!) meant I never got to play with stop-motion animation, which always fascinated me.

Drawing in class when you should be listening? 

In grammar school, yes.  I had the intense ability to focus on things I liked and the opposite for those I didn’t.  I did well in science and math, primarily, and English to a lesser degree.  History was my Achilles heel.  While achieving almost straight A’s, my eighth grade history teacher once told my parents she thought I had a learning disability.  This from a teacher who called Kaiser Wilhelm “Kaiser Willie”.  That might have caught my attention in grade 3.  So, when I wasn’t asleep at my desk, I came out of that class with lots of art. 

By high school, drawing became “track 2”.  To filter out other distractions (or, again, falling asleep from boredom), I drew all over the margins.  But its purpose was to keep me focused and alert.  I was fairly good at paying attention while drawing, but not always.  Sometimes, the little stories the pictures created were too enticing.

Professionally, it was the same.  During meetings, I would doodle incessantly unless I was directly involved in the conversation.  Since it was intended to keep me focused instead of sending me off into introspection, I kept the images structured.  People said I had the most elaborate doodles they’d ever seen.

You've mentioned previously that you had "problems" in school and I wondered if that turned you off for a while or did you press through immediately?

Which school?  In H.S., I had a run in that nearly got me expelled.  I was spotted in Geometry with an Italian textbook on my desk.  The teacher didn’t like Italians (he once told a friend of mine he was lucky he didn’t look Italian).  It set us against each other.  When I was sent to the principal’s office, I made a new friend there.  With the exception of that class, I had no further problems in school (except my History grades – see the last question).

As for DAVE School, yes, I’ve had some frustrating moments (with the assignments – the school has been entirely top-notch!).  At those times, I feel both the need to get away and the compulsion to keep improving on my work.  I am highly self-critical and can be pessimistic at times.  But I use that to my advantage.  So, I look at my item and say “It really sucks, and it will never be good.”  A true pessimist would give up.  I approach it with “If I’m to survive this with any dignity, I’d better make it as good as I can.”

Generally, I attack, step back and look, then attack again as compulsion and aversion wax and wane against each other.

I guess I'm really curious because I work with creative types like you all the time and I would like to better direct them in life.  What drives you? 

I’d be a total liar if I didn’t credit vanity to a large degree.  I love sharing my work and getting “ooh’s” and “aah’s”.  But I’m perceptive enough to tell when I’m being patronized, which is worse than an actual insult.  I look at criticism like a vitamin – I might not like it when I have to take it, but I’ll be stronger for it later.  I like a challenge where I can see success (even if I am not sure I can achieve it).  If I look at some thing and I can’t see success in it, that makes me want to walk away.  If you want to drive me to success, the definition and path to it must be clear.

I also love making things “work”.  I’m no mechanic, but I love making stuff.  That’s what got me into computer programming.  I could create something, and then it would behave in a (generally) predictable manner.  It’s exactly the same for digital animation.  You put together all the components, and then you let it go and it WORKS.  Or, it doesn’t and you fix it.  Either way, you’ve created something, and it takes on a life of its own.  I’ve heard that this may be a male complex, since we can’t give birth.  I’m OK with that (although I’m not sure I believe it).  It doesn’t take away from the thrill at all.  My father-in-law is a mechanic and restores antique tractors to their former glory, and I think he’s the same as I am in this aspect.  He gets to assemble it, make it “as it should be”, and then turn the thing on and it goes.  TOTALLY different disciplines, same driving force.

What makes you pack it all up and go to school to become an animator?

I have a vivid imagination and the desire to share it visually.  I have always had a mildly artistic nature.  I can draw pictures, but they never looked good enough for me to pursue traditional animation/artwork.  When I saw what I could do with graphics software, I realized I’d found a medium that was precise, yet forgiving enough to work with.  Then I saw a DAVE School commercial.  It raised my interest and curiosity to the point where I thought, “You know, I probably could do that!”  But there was no way I could afford a year off work and tuition payments, and if I were going to do it, I wanted to do it right.

This year in January, however, I lost my father to cancer.  While it’s still a financial struggle, he left me enough to pursue the dream.  It was a matter of “now or never” at that point (pardon the cliché).  My wife helped me decide to go for it.  So, between my father and my wife, I am pursuing this goal intensely.  My job has been very understanding and has kept me on the payroll for advice and assistance.  It’s my airbag in case this new venture crashes and burns.

As for my outlook on life and how it pertains to this, I don’t think there was any one event that made me lose my conservative viewpoint.  But, I lost my mom at age 53.  My dad was 69.  There has been too much early death in my extended family, too.  In 2002, I was shot in the back while being held up, and at times it didn’t look like I was going to make it.  So, my attitude over the years has become “absolutely plan for the future, but not at the expense of today”.  I want my kids to learn the same philosophy, and you have to teach by example!