Hello, Everyone

[XceeD]

My name is Corey, or "XceeD" if you know me online.

I started gaming when I was extremely young. What used to be days spent outside exploring creeks and the outside world turned into days spent sitting on my butt playing video games. The virtual worlds and instant gratification sucked me in instantly. Never had I done anything that was so rewarding (seemingly) yet required such little effort. This is where the addiction started, and it hasn't yet ended.

I sometimes wonder where I would be in life if I never started playing video games. Possibly an athlete, maybe a biologist doing important field work. But I have to face reality...And the reality is that I'm not where I want to be in life. I have barely over 30 college credit hours completed and I've never had a job I've liked. It's just insane that I continue putting time into a hobby with such little return.

But not all is gloomy in my life. I started watching Cam's videos over the summer and they helped me cut down my gaming sessions quite a bit. Since then I have met new people, read more books, and expanded on a much more fulfilling hobby (photography). The highlight of my summer was walking up to a wild Elk (within 10 feet) and photographing it. That experience was better than anything I've ever had in gaming. 

Thanks for reading this mess of words. To end I'll give you some of my goals for 2016. Good luck to all of you in the new year.

1. Quit gaming completely
2. Go back to college
3. Read at least one nonfiction book per week
4. Photograph a phidippus putnami jumping spider

[Laney]

Hey Corey! Nice to meet you. I love all your goals. Nature was a huge calling for me as a kid. It was so magical. I hope to recapture that mystery and awe soon, and to involve nature in my life more in general. If you start a journal be sure to post pictures!! Would be very interested in any journeys you go on, or animals that you see.

[Cam Adair]

Hey Corey! Awesome to have you join us here. 

There's a photography thread here. Would love to see some of your work!