In about eight hours from now, I'll be leaving California for the weekend to meet up with Winter, Aquanda, and a few others in Portland. From there, we head to Vancouver, Canada for the tQ live #5.(Tournament thread here) This Saturday, I will be commentating the live with Zander, who will be casting from his home in New York. Not only will this be my first time out of the States, but this will be my first time attending an e-Sports event as part of the production. Only a year ago, I was still just another long time Broodwar player in the SC2 beta who watched the Korean pro-scene with wanting eyes, wondering whether or not SC2 would take off in North America/Europe. Now I'm packing up my clothes and equipment as I double check my ticket and passport, ready to begin a pursuit of legitimate passion, and start a new adventure. The feeling I have right now sounds and looks something like this:

The only reason I'm able to go (being a poor University student), is that one of my SC2 students paid for my ticket out of pure generosity, telling me, "It was always a dream of mine to travel and participate in these events, but now that I'm working full time, I'd like to give someone else the chance." He was a Broodwar player and practiced frequently with Froz years ago, so if you run into a player with "gosu" in his name on ladder, be nice to him!

I'm lucky to have found a personal sponsor. I'm lucky to be a part of such an incredible team. And more than anything else, I'm lucky that the gaming community in general is able to turn their genuine love for the game into something very real. That we may, through hard work and sheer force of will, create an adventure of our own is incredible, and I'm honored to be a part of it.

If not for your love of e-Sports, I would only be able to dream of having an opportunity like this, and would still be nothing but a bored student, waiting for their life to begin. I'm excited to see what the future holds.

Thank you!