It’s difficult to group the average gamer into a common stereotype, since gamers are so diverse. Today’s gamer may be the mother of five standing in line in front of you at the grocery store or the swimmer up at five a.m. each morning for practice. For some people, gaming takes on a life of its own, separate from any day-to-day activities people find themselves involved with, while others have made a career out of gaming. But one thing gamers have in common, besides their love of games, is that they have a wide variety of interests and hobbies. Videogames aren’t what made them who they are; they are just an important part of their already full lives. Welcome to “The Other Me.” Each month we will take a look at some of the more interesting hobbies and activities people find themselves doing when they aren’t gaming. This would include things such as flying airplanes, playing paintball, volunteer work, collecting coins, or even amassing the largest matchbook collection ever. So if you have a hobby or interest you want to share, send an email to kiki@theblueskittle.com.

by Kiki Lewis [kiki kat]

Our next contestant hails from sunny Milwaukee, wait a second, I got that all wrong. First off, there are no contestants in this article! And second off… does the sun even shine in Milwaukee? Aren’t Lavern and Shirley from Milwaukee? Well I digress. Let’s start from the beginning, shall we? Originally from Milwaukee, WI, Lucas, our next featured gamer, was born into a family of artists.

Lucas began painting at a very young age. He is the oldest of five; four brothers, and one sister. He appears to have an amazing and talented family! His mother is an artist and he says she is quite creative; his father is more a musical influence. His brother Gregory Boyd is a Master Steel Pan musician and has performed with some big names in the Jazz world he has released several CD’s on his own label and lives in Denmark his wife Lone Boyd who he states is an amazing vocalist. Greg can be found at www.gregoryboyd.dk. He has another talented brother Derrick, who lives in China where he teaches English to young children, is a film maker, and all around entrepreneur. His youngest sister, Alisha, is also musically and artistically talented and lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado with her fiancé Brock. As you can see, Lucas is very proud of them, as he has every right to be!

Lucas, at a young age, moved from Wisconsin to Colorado amidst the wind-swept high plains of Aurora (did you know that Aurora is Latin for dawn?). Lucas soon discovered what every angst-driven young child with a family of artists does, he was an artist too. Surrounded by a family of artists and beautiful scenery he did what he was born to do… interpret what his mind sees, and his brain processes, and present his heart and soul to the masses. This month we are asking to share a tiny bit of his heart and soul with us.

Name: Lucas
Xbox Gamertag: lucas38
PS3: artist5280

“The Artist”

I enjoy creating art, whether it’s with a paint brush, colored pencils, or my digital camera; I find it all very relaxing and challenging at the same time. When I was a teen living in Colorado Springs I discovered that people began to request my work which, at the time, consisted of a series of detailed drawings of owls and tropical birds. One day in my Junior High art class, I matted my works, placed them in a white paper bag with handles and began going door to door in my neighborhood selling my originals. They where an instant hit and I discovered that I enjoyed selling as well as creating work, and I met some new neighbors along the way. So, while other kids were playing kick ball and watching cartoons, I was making money as well as a bit of name for myself. During that time I was entered in several art shows and contests from which I received a few awards. It was all very inspiring, and reinforced my drive to become a professional artist!

Liberating
Inspiring
Scary

I created a series of macro images, close ups of everyday items such as children’s toys, door bells and other things, in the early 1990’s after I graduated from The Art Institute in Denver . I created a series of impressionistic paintings of women called “The Java Lady Series” which is still my best selling series even to this day. It was during this time I began dabbling in photography and got the “bug” for taking pictures adding yet another dimension to my artistic skill sets.

Today I own Boyd Images and with the help of my outstanding Marketing Director Beth Kwapis, my goal is to get published and have my images mass produced and distributed world-wide. This, for me, is the ultimate goal to achieve; it’s challenging and frankly I am learning a lot about the art of perseverance! I believe if you want to achieve your goals, whatever they may be, you have to surround yourself by the right team of people and I believe I have a knack for attracting the right people to achieve this particular goal.

Words only used in painting:
“Happy accident”
trans-formative
easel

Favorite snack food/drink: Red Bull and Pringles

Time Commitment: Not nearly enough, but that’s changing.

Future Plans: Yes, it is a career that encompasses many facets which includes sales and marketing

Injuries while painting: When I paint, I reach something of an out of body state so I need to work in a non cluttered area since I have been known to trip over any obstacles!

Most Exciting Moment: The moment when I actually see an idea that’s been rolling around in my head become a tangible thing

Real Life and Gaming Interaction/Overlap

Needless to say, the incredible artistic nature of today’s games with use of light and shadow, particle effects and other graphical advancements are both inspiring and mind boggling!

Gaming community associations:

In the art world I am a member and work for Artwork Network www.artworknetwork.com an amazing community of artists founded by Alan Kircher which assists artists by “creating opportunities for art”.

In the gaming world I am a long-time member of Geezer Gamers, a group of over thirty-something professionals, parents, and enthusiasts who form an awesome adult gaming community

Gaming preferences:

I have the big three gaming systems; an Xbox360, PS3, and a Wii, as well as a PSP. I definitely play the Xbox360 a majority of the time on which I play Gears of War 2, GRID, Call of Duty: World at War as well as the other Call of Duty titles, I love first and third person shooters! I also play BioShock which is an artistic and atmospheric masterpiece, and Fallout 3! I can’t forget about Frontlines: Fuel of War, Halo 3, and a whole slew of titles in our library which consists of about two hundred titles.

On the PS3 I have enjoyed Warhawk, Resistance Fall of Man 2, Dead Space, Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune, Little Big Planet, and Metal Gear Solid 4, which is a brilliant work of story telling and design!

Joke:
Q: How many surrealists does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: Fish!