Imagine Magazine Question For 6/1

[Comicality]

We all have them growing up, right? I mean, they start at a pretty young age, whether other people think they're rational, reasonable, or even possible. We're talking about DREAMS this time around!

When you were younger (Or, if you're one of our teen Shackers now)...what kind of dreams did you have, going forward in your life? Don't be shy! Hehehe! Share them with us! Maybe you wanted to sing. Maybe you wanted to wanted to be a famous artist. Maybe you were into science, or wanted to explore the mysteries of space, or wanted to make movies! Maybe you love cars, or video games, or photography. Or maybe you just wanted a significant other and white picket fence, with a dog named 'cuddles' and a pool table in the basement! We all have big dreams at one time or another in our lives. The question is...how close did you come to reaching those dreams?

Did you go for it and succeed? Go for it and maybe it wasn't what you thought it would be? Did you let someone else discourage you from giving it a try at all? Maybe you changed your mind and are much happier doing what you're doing today. Or...maybe there's this little splinter in the back of your mind that's still asking you...'What if?'

For this issue, we're talking about 'dreams', and what we did (or didn't do) to chase them down. Give us your thoughts when you get a chance! And I'll seezya soon!
 

NEW questions to be asked on the 1st and 15th of every month! Jump right in and give us your thoughts for future issues! Answer in the replies here, or email them to me at Comicality@shackoutback.net if you like! Anonymous comments are always welcome! Just let me know ahead of time! Cool?

 

[Comicality]

Sooooo many dreams! Hehehe, I'm surprised that I was even able to balance them all in my head all at once, to be honest. But, one thing that I can be proud of is the fact that I really did pursue almost all of them. Some, I was good at. Some...not so much. But I always took a shot.

I think my biggest shot was an acting career. I went all out for that one. Had some successes too, but that whole business is full of rejection. Which, I was a 'tween' at the time, and dealing with stuff at home and that...it was difficult. It's hard not to take it personally. I had an agent, but it wasn't like a Hollywood agent. Her name was Mrs. Hooper, and she was with a modeling agency. And...errr...hehehe I HATED modeling! I really did. The clothes and the poses and just...everything about it was boring to me. I wanted to make movies and stuff, you know? So she got me some 'extra' work in a few movies, but that was about it. (Although...Mmmm Thomas Ian Nicholas in "Rookie Of The Year"! Hehehe, I was on that set. And he was so damn CUTE with the squeaky voice! ::Faints::)

I also wanted to be a comic book artist at one time, so I was drawing stuff non-stop. And I wanted to make music too, which I actually was pretty good at for a while, but don't ask. And I went to college for film and television because I wanted to make my own movies too and bring my stories to the big screen. So, yes...I do have some student films out there as well. Hehehe! But, because of scheduling restrictions where I needed certain prerequisites for my film classes before I could move forward...I decided to take a creative writing class to fill up my schedule.

That TERRIFIED me! I mean, I took it because it was available, it was good for college credit, and after the comic books and the movie ideas and the acting scripts I had read and performed...I figured it would be an easy 'A' and keep up my GPA. But, once I got there, I was so nervous. These were people who wanted to write stories for a living, you know? How am I going to add up?

Long story short, the stuff I read out loud in class and shared with them was met with looks of...um....shock, I guess. Like, "You wrote that YESTERDAY???" And my teacher submitted some of my works to the college's annual collection of prized works. So, I dodged a bullet, I guess?

I tried writing online for a short while after that, but I found that so-called 'professional' writers could be really dismissive. Granted, I was still learning, but they could be so elitist. I didn't like that at all. So I stopped for a while.

Then...came Nifty. And hot stories about cute boys falling in love. Then came "New Kid In School" and 'Comicality'....the end! Hehehe!

So, I've had more dreams than I could possibly list here in this one little space...but I definitely chased them! And I don't regret it at all. I've had some amazing experiences, looking back. With my artwork, with my acting, with my music, with my film work, and now with my writing. If you've got a dream, you've ot to go for it, right? Better to fail than to not try.

[Page Scrawler]

I always wanted to be an author or a chef. I started "writing" stories in 5th Grade, and researched books on writer's "craft", to polish my skills. In high school, I took classes in Creative writing and library science. I also began cooking in the kitchen around the same time I started writing. Small stuff at first, like hot dogs, scrambled eggs, or boxed mac and cheese. Then I started making pancakes from scratch, or baking my own bread. I have so many recipes for mac and cheese, it's not even funny! Now, I make my own pizza dough and sauce at home, but I still use "recipes" to tell how much of this or that ingredient needs to go in the pan. I even worked as a dishwasher/prep cook at a restaurant before the whole Covid thing put me on furlough! I tried going to college for a Creative Writing degree, but couldn't cut it. Maybe someday soon, I'll go back to school and study cooking to polish my skills a little more, or try for a business degree and open my own restaurant!

[Page Scrawler]

@Comicality Also, dude: You were a model? 

[Black Paper]

No offense, but, I wanted to be a Jedi. Yup. Until I was 14 a Jedi Knight was what I wanted to become. As I got older I wanted to be someone creative. A chef perhaps until I realized just how good at business I was and merchandising retail. Then, at 19 I grew my passion and started writing as well. But, yeah a JEDI! Dream big😒🌙

Edited June 3, 2020 by Black Paper

[Comicality]

17 minutes ago, Page Scrawler said:

@Comicality Also, dude: You were a model? 

 

Very briefly. But only because I went through the modeling agency to start acting. Hehehe! I didn't like it much though. ::Shrugs::

[Page Scrawler]

8 minutes ago, Comicality said:

Very briefly. But only because I went through the modeling agency to start acting.

I'm almost tempted to ask for pictures.   

But that would be rude, of course, so I won't. 

[Black Paper]

To be fair, I was offered modeling gigs by multiple agencies some just while I was sitting alone in the mall waiting for my friends. I was 17 and they said I had an extremely “photogenic and workable yet applicable look” Yet I HATED having people take my pictures and always shyed away from it  *shrugs* 

Edited June 3, 2020 by Black Paper

[Comicality]

3 hours ago, Page Scrawler said:

I'm almost tempted to ask for pictures.   

But that would be rude, of course, so I won't. 

 

No worries. It wasn't anything glamorous or anything. It was like toys and back to school print ads. It's not like I was sporting Abercrombie & Fitch on a runway somewhere! LOL! It was more like, "Hey! Cute kid with the bright eyes! Come help us sell our shit!" So I don't want you to think I was some highly sought after commodity in the industry. I mean, there were cute boys around me at all times, so that was cool. But I think I was still too young to really know for sure that I was gay yet...so even THAT wasn't much of a bonus at the time. I thought it was kinda boring. I'm thankful for the opportunity though. My parents got the money (I was, like...10 maybe? 11? I forget.) but they bought me a Nintendo that year for Christmas. The one with Mario and Duck Hunt, and the light zapper gun, and I got 'Life Force' annnnd...I think 'Kung Fu'? Or maybe 'Excite Bike'. So, that was the best thing I got out of modeling. Hehehe! That part was fun!