It all started in 1998...
Since 28/08/2019
The learning begins with skateboards and punk bands scribbled on everyone's school bag. I decide to learn drums and start to attend group lessons at school. Lloyd Gyi drills 8th notes, triplets and 16ths into us week in week out.
I start to jam with mates in lunchtime breaks and end up playing "freak on a leash" by Korn, Red Hot Chilli Peppers and anything Blink 182 in school assemblies. By year 10 I was given praise by my favourite music teacher Mrs Lucas, I'll never forget that day.
By Year 11 and 12 I'm at a different school (Georges River College Oatley Campus). I had different teachers but I still managed to receive some good feedback. I was even asked to play in the stage band... yep, I was that guy.
It was around this time I started playing in pubs and festivals (not that I was old enough) in a progressive screamo band called Winters Underground, and opportunities playing in church every week was definitely building up a nice bit of momentum and experience.
By this time I managed to finish year 12 studies (much to my mothers' surprise) and went to TAFE to "learn about the music business" ... lol!
I heard a mate was going to college at the Australian Institute of Music, and it sounded awesome, so I followed him. I managed to get my degree. I learned so much and met so many great people. I formed some great friendships that continue to be good friends more than 10 years later.
I then enter the real world, learning how to make an income with my degree.. the struggles were real. Let's just say I wasn't exactly rolling in it. I was lucky enough to live at home, but getting regular gigs and tutoring opportunities was proving to be difficult.
A couple of years roll by, I travel around Australia bouncing from band to band living the touring life. My quarter-life crisis hits me as I keep coming back home from these amazing opportunities with no money, no savings, no superannuation... So with a tail between my legs, I got a 'real job'.
Enter the apprenticeship days... I started from the bottom as a fitter and machinist which ended up with further studies to become a toolmaker. I saved some $$ to go to Russia for a month on holiday with some mates and had an amazing time!!
I finally moved out by age 27, I met a girl. I moved back in with mum a year later. I had a slight blowout with $$ and friends, saved $$ and managed to move into the city with the GF and within a few weeks, landed my first sales gig.
Due to Sydney being so damn expensive, I was finally earning a decent wage at age 29... at this stage, I was still doing gigs off and on but I limited my time to playing only well-paying gigs, I played nothing that required my time. I was jaded and in it for the dollars... So sad.
Trying my best to balance life and 'get ahead', the girlfriend and I moved to Canberra for a cheaper cost of living, better-paying jobs and cheapER real estate.
At this stage I'm in my early 30's, I haven't touched the drum kit for about a year and I end up selling it.. super fucking sad. To make matters worse I was having tough times at work and the girlfriend and I were breaking up.
I decided to go back to uni part-time studying IT whilst working fulltime. I got a new job then it fell through at the last minute and managed to get a new job back on the tools to keep me afloat.
I was lucky to meet a truly beautiful woman and we start dating. After several months of dating, we went on a holiday for 10 days in New York... Such an amazing time!!
Age 33 - got my first IT job... Super stoked! at this stage, I learned to code my first blog and wrote this thing your reading right now.
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