Anyway, shortly before graduating, I got a job at the Inner Harbor, a major tourist area in downtown Baltimore, and became financially independent It was by fluke that I got the job. I was a busboy at a Greek restaurant and everyone there was like one huge family. The guys in the kitchen were the best. They had the most interesting stories and some of the most liveliest characters I have ever met. I learned a great deal from dealing with the public and eventually became a waiter. Shortly after which, I got a job at another restaurant and then moved out on my own.

Fleeing the nest was something to this day my mom thinks was done too soon. I obviously disagree. I moved to an area called Roland Park, where minorities were nannies, doormen, and servants - not residents. My room-mate was from a upper-class suburban family but was more down to earth than I was. He hated the looks I got and treatment from people in the area. Eventually it all passed when they saw that I was working full-time and in college.

College was a concept lost on me in my youth. I first went to UMBC. What a joke that was. Here I was, 18 and naive, placed into classes of 200+ students with no active interest from the teachers, overwhelmed with paperwork to apply for loans, exposed to drugs and alcohol at every turn, pressured to take classes that had nothing to do with my major, and women that made Playboy models look like sheep. After 12 weeks, I withdrew from classes and concentrated on making a living. I don't think the school failed me, I was totally unprepared and having way too much fun. As I see it now, the best I may ever be is President of the USA. Sound familiar - oops! I don't have a rich daddy. Oh well!

I was now in a period of my life where everything was at its best. I had a steady cash flow, I was going from one relationship and experience to the next like a breeze in the wind. I decided to go to the local community college, BCCC and began a pre-med program there. I then saw an option to take a photography class and figured why not give it a try. This turned out to be a life-changing decision. They say that there is a photo bug and if you get bit, you get infected. I got bit hard - and often. My teacher was so inspirational and thorough. She made it so much fun and rewarding. I made several friends in that class, all of which were my seniors. One in particular is to this day a great friend and personal saint. Many people think that community colleges, or junior colleges, are a waste of time. But I offer this question for review, how is any level of education and self-improvement a waste of time?

When I started making more money, life really took off. I met people and began engaging in new experiences that placed me where I am today. One of my first steps was meeting a very dear friend that actually forced me to apply to the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) and take up photography. I think the fact that I was in secretly in love with her may have been the primary influence in my decision. And no, that's not her on the right. Photography can reveal a lot about yourself. You are forced to decide right away if the way you see the world matters to others. They say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but art is purely based on ego. I remember how constantly frustrated I was at MICA because it was an art school, but to me it was a bunch of rich-kids peddling crap on the basis of self-expression. Wait, that is art! Learning how to approach people and asking them to be photographed took a great deal of confidence and risk. I was often surprised by the number of people that were willing to disrobe at the drop of a hat. When I think of the number of photos it takes to get just one good picture, I wonder how the pros keep their sanity.

In the midst of trying to pay the bills and stay in school, I went through several different types of jobs. Many of them were very mundane, some were just plain humiliating. But persistence is the key to success. But how can one be successful if one has no attainable dream, or no dream at all? I like most people, was at a point where I was drifting through life. I tried to persue a more serious academic course, but even with available scholarships, paying the rent and eating came first. I had only myself to support, with the occasional family help, and still barely made it from paycheck to paycheck.

I soon landed a job as a bartender and it was about this point that I moved from Roland Park to downtown, the Inner Harbor Loft Apartments. I was in an apartment about the size of the houses I grew up in. I had two great room-mates, both female and very nurturing. It was a loft, so you could not be too shy about anything. If you couldn't deal, it wasn't for you. My room mates were a blast. Were had worked in the same circles and got absolutely F.U.B.A.R(ed) more than once in a while. But all good things come to past and eventually I was going through room mates about every 4 to 6 months. Inevitably, I became financially independent enough to no longer need a room mate. I would go to Fat Tuesdays religiously and drink ice cold 190 Octanes till my face went numb. That place was notorious for having great live music, the occasional celebrity, and Au Pairs. There was this exclusive type group of us that were bartenders that worked in an area called the Brokerage. We went to Atlantic City, Ocean City, New York and Philadelphia on average every other week in the summertime, just for the hell of it. We were all young and had more energy allowed by law. We drank and partied like every day was 1999.

The Baltimore Orioles was the team to vote for. Whenever there was a home game, the activity in my neighborhood increased 1000 times. I enjoyed going out to the local pub, Pickles, and eating some buffalo wings or steamed shrimp with Old Bay Seasoning. Whenever I was doing that, I felt like home and nothing could go wrong. I went to more baseball games that I can count, and probably would rather not know.

I had a pretty large contingent of friends. I met a great many people from other countries and learned so much about different world views. Somehow, I started dating Au Pairs, and now found them my core group of friends. Particularly girls from New Zealand and Australia seemed to be more fitting as friends than most others. There were many times when I would go out in the evening with at least six girls for a night of fun. We all often returned to my loft and had some late night food from the local sub-shop. Man, there is nothing like a hot cheesesteak sub at 3am.

When I began working with a Fortune 500 company I excelled immediately inside the company. I won't mention the company, but I will say that I learned the corporate world is 10x more challenging than real life. I use the wonder how people could do the 9 to 5 and become these drones in society. I soon not only learned, but became one as well. The money was very good and I was able to take up photography again. I could not part as much and became more disciplined with money. I also learned that finishing a liter of Southern Comfort before noon was not fun anymore. I began taking my classes more seriously and there was this thing called the internet everyone was talking about.

One evening when I was at Fat Tuesdays out drinking with a friend, a group of seven or so Au Pairs from Sweden and Norway sat at a table next to where I was with a friend outside. In this group of women, there was someone in which I would later marry.