Ladies and gentlemen, it's great to be back. I had a marvelous time in Denton, Texas, and I got to meet some very amazing individuals. For those that don't know, I was lucky enough to venture to the University of North Texas last week for the University Film & Video's annual conference. Every year, the members of this organization get together to deliver academic papers, show movies, exchange ideas, and dine on exquisite food. I myself presented a paper (my very first academic paper written outside of college, not to mention my first presentation to a group of highly intelligent professionals) on horror films, and based on the feedback I received later, my presentation was not only informative, but engaging and enjoyed by the professors and grad students who attended. I hope to write another paper and make another presentation at next year's conference. I'm considering tackling either a paper on the role of film music in narrative filmmaking, or an examination of the portrayal of HIV/AIDS patients on film. Of course, being the overly-excited individual that I am, I may end up with a paper on a completely different topic by this time next year.

I highly recommend that everyone who reads this does something that really takes them out of their element and offers them a chance at an adventure. I once read in some self-help list that a person should do at least one thing that scares them everyday. For me, my biggest fear is change. It's not that I don't want to progress forward to bigger and better things - the issue is that I don't want to lose the things I love most, and the process of change will eventually do just that. I love my family, I love my home, I love the movies I watch and the ducks that live in the creek behind my childhood home. None of them deserve to be lost. And yet too much connection will weigh me down and prevent me from getting to where I want to be. I no longer desire the role of the Next Steven Spielberg. I want to teach film theory and screenwriting in my hometown. That is what will make me most happy - talking about my passions with equally-passionate college students, in the town that gave me so much of my identity. But sooner or later, I will probably have to leave in order to get the academic credentials I need to teach.

The thought of missing out on the things that give me the feeling of happiness is quite frightening. But going to a place thousands of miles away from home proves that I have it in me to do what needs to be done. I'm like a blend of the characters from The Wizard of Oz: I always had the courage, the brain, and the heart to make my way towards destiny, but in the end, I just want to go home.