Hewwo everyone,

If by chance you haven't known me for more then 3 years.... stop reading now and go curl up in a corner so I can talk to the people that have cared for me for over 8 years now.

I'm out of the army now... living in NY.... about 30min from NYC, feel free to contact me for devmeets...

I'll be going to John Jay school of criminal justice majoring in computer information technology (emphasis law enforcement) and then shortly after looking for a school to obtain my masters in computer forensics (MIT)I hope..... botu degrees are free rides for me serving my country and I'm taking advantage of it all. I'm not stupid.... and I'll work the system till it folds... because it worked me till I folded.

who's still out there listening? I miss my old school crew... these pos new admins and chat @'s piss me off and deter me from getting on dAmn for the simple purpose that this may as be a facebook clone with an emphasis on sketching.

You know who you are when I say I love you! and I'd love to hear from some of you again.... just to make sure your all doing ok... it turns out this place, this site, isn't ours anymore... I understand this and accept it now.... so I close with regression to a different time of DA's history where we all know it was better.. our era.... I miss you all... and I've never forgotten you. Your memory will carry on....


Take care of yourselves, no one will do it for you... stay strong in these difficult times and always remember there's someone out there that has it 10 times worse then you... so thank your higher power everyday for what you have, appreciate it... and never let it go.


*nod*


Love ya guys,

Dustin

Well well... well.......... well..................


Hi everyone, I'm not dead after all!


I've kind of vanished since I've been back from Iraq, and I will continue to do so after this update. I just wanted to let everyone know that I was doing alright, I made it home safe and in one piece. I had a bunch of fun adventures in Germany after I got back not to mention Amsterdam... and moving to New York.

Currently... I am living with my wife Paula and our two children (I like to call them that anyway) Dippy and Doritio (my weiner dog and chihuahua) in Highland Falls, NY right outside of West Point, NY. I have about a year left here, after this I get out of the army and I'm going back to school for Neuropyshcopharmacology , big word I know, it's a phd.

Emm... Nothing else to really report... I love my life, every minute of it. It's amazing how having death stare you in the face and then beating it, sets priorities in your life. I miss you guys, just because I'm gone doesn't mean I've forgotton about all the things you have given me over this decade.


Love ya guys!


Dustin
Fleshy

I'm sorry it's been so long since everyone has heard from me, it seems a lot of you have been a bit worried. I totally forgot to update and let you guys know that I got home safely and that everything was ok. I apologize, but it makes me feel all warm and gooey inside knowing that you guys care enough to still worry about me after all these years, i love you guys so much.. lol

Well, I got home and then went on a 30 day vacation to the states, went to the beach; watched the waves creep onto the shore. I always said the only sand I was going to like was the sand right next to the ocean... I wasn't kidding around

I then flew back to Germany with my wife and festered there for another 2 1/2 months. It wasn't too bad though, me and Paula managed to hit up Czech, Oktoberfest in Munich, Belgium, Frankfurt and last but defiantly not least Amsterdam!!

We had a lot of fun, but spent a lot of money along the way, and not to mention buying for Christmas the whole time... yah.

Well, now I'm back in the states for another 30 days of relaxation. I'll report to West Point, NY on the 8th of January so my vacation time will be up until then. We're not going to be doing much but hanging out with family for the holidays, we'll have a lot of packing and moving to do as well.

I just can't wait to have my own house again, with my own stuff... my own life, you know?

I've shifted my plans for my future as well. I've been doing a lot of research lately on the statistics of graphic designers and the job market. I hate to say it guys, it's not looking too good for us designers on the job market, so I won't be going to school for design anymore. Art and design will always remain my hobby and perhaps even freelance at times but I won't be relying on it for the bread.

I've decided to set my sights a little higher in which I'll be doing for my PhD in neuroscience/psychotherapy with a BAS in pharmaceutical sciences. Weird eh? It's my other obsession, the human mind/brain. I figure I already listen to dozens of podcasts about these subjects and always find myself reading about it (..and understanding most of the topics) so I'm pretty pumped about it all.

So as I get to NY, I'll continue to keep myself busy. I'm going back to school as soon as possible to get my general education classes out of the way before I actually start attending school full time after I get out of the army, but I'll be around.

Always feel free to e-mail me if you need something - dustinsmeck@gmail.com

I miss you guys, and I send my love. Thanks for worrying :*)

It's time for me to go again, I'm just going to slip into the background for a little while, somethings have changed from my last journal and well, I just don't feel like talking about them anymore at this moment in time.

I've made a bunch of new friends recently, thank you for your support and I will see everyone sometime soon, but if you see my level of activity drop substantially in the following weeks just know it's not because I'm ignoring you, it's because of other reasons beyond my control.

In the meantime show some support to my wife and her graphic design projects, I don't think a lot of you knew she was on deviantART.

I'll be lurking around, and I'll miss you guys, but until then.. Ta-ta!



-edit-

I've been thinking about this for awhile, and I thought I'd might as well give it a shot. A lot of you have asked me if there is anything you can do for me while I'm over here and I have come up with something if you really want to help me out.

I am in desperate need of stock photography, any and all of it to practice the craft and to silence my mind after a hard day, I haven't found a better therapy then sitting down with photoshop and creating, so this is an idea I propose to all of you wanting to help me out a little.

Send me stock! Your favorite stock, stock you have laying around, or just anything I can use over here to create and I promise you it will be going to good use.

If you are interested please send a note to my wife Paula (see icon above) and she will coordinate with you to get an address, you'll be sending it to her in the states and she will be gathering it up and sending it to me over here.

As always with stock, please make sure to include where you have got it from so that I may credit the creators.

Any and all response/time will be appreciated, and will make me feel wonderful. I almost feel horrible asking, but I know you guys aren't just saying "I wish I could do something" just to say it.

Much love to each and everyone of you... your efforts are appreciated greatly

We've been extended. 90 days.

I'm moving again (to a less dangerous place ) but somehow that doesn't make me feel any better about the situation.

We were so close too, within 20 days of going home! Now, we finish this month, and the rest of next month...and THEN then 90 days start, so we're looking at a tentative date of the end of September until I can be home and be we the ones I love again.

Guys, I'm tired... but I'm not going to let this break me down, It's just one more thing right? ..right?

With moving, I'll be leaving dA for a little while again until we can get the internet up and running at our new place of business. You'll all know when I go inactive, I'll post another one of these.

So.. I'll see you guys around for a little bit longer until I go away again.

Thanks for being there, all of you.