Figured I'd formally introduce myself, even though I already wrote a couple posts... I just joined today, haha. This might be long... I'm a bit of a writer, haha.

So, I'm Jeff, though I'd rather go by my middle name, Vincent, but it never sticks, though I've had random nicknames from JV to JPop by my crazy friends. Born and raised in the Rochester area of New York, I turned 20 earlier this month and am a second year student at RIT. My major is game design and development and I want to minor in creative writing... honestly, I'm a writer at heart and writing is my passion.

Let's see, a little about me. I'm a male, straight, and I'm honestly on here because I would like to find the love of my life... but I'm not against making some new friends along the way. Though for me, a significant other is a best friend, and I never let myself forget that. I'm a hopeless romantic, unfortunately, and I say that because it's led to a lot of heartache in life. To make matters worse, I fall in love quite quickly and have a natural desire to rush deeper into love. However, I strongly believe that my princess is out there, so I will overcome all the trials I must until I rescue her. I still hold onto happily ever afters, despite all my hardships.

My past... I have a tendency of prefer not to look back at what has been, and yet I do anyways, even when I know it will hurt. It does seem to motivate me at times, though. As a child, I generally was an outcast from a young age, and, according to my parents, it began with an experience where all the little boys in Elementary School hid the girls' coats in some bushes to play a prank on them, and I didn't feel it was right and I told them where it was. Generally, the other guys would tease me because I always stood up for the girls and tried my best to respect them. The girls were nice to me, and my few friends were girls, but most of them still would rather hang with other girls. Middle School brought me to a private school, and everyone was nicer, but by then I was so timid that I would sit alone every recess, just writing and writing. I always noticed the girls whispering about me when they'd walk by, and the boys generally just completely ignored me. Still, midway through Middle School, a new kid came by the name of Ted and within a day we were best friends and I had gotten in trouble for talking in class, which was like the first time anybody heard me speak, haha. From then on, I starting forming a few more friends. By the way, during all this, from 5th grade on, I went from crush to crush, and eventually asked a girl out, only to have her cheat on me right in front of my eyes after I gave her a birthday gift. I went through a few more painful relationships, always ending up used or cheated on, and eventually it brought me to high school. In ninth grade, I met a nice girl named Christina who was a year younger but had skipped a grade and had the same birthday as me. We ended up going out and were together five years. Two years into the relationship, she was raped by someone who broke into the house, and it left her very emotionally unstable. A year after that, she dumped me, dated another boy, then got together with me while still dating that boy, and it was very confusing, but soon she was exclusive again. Four months later, I proposed to her. This past Valentine's Day, a friend told me he saw her cheating on me back in December, so I approached her to get her side of the story. I gave her the benefit of the doubt and trusted her, and she said she'd always love me, but a couple hours later, she texted me saying she never wanted to see me again with no reasoning, though I've talked to a therapist who concluded the rape may have left her bipolar, leading to the irrational reaction. We were to be married next fall. I'm well past that and have started trying to find love again. I'm a romantic and I strongly desire someone to hold and cherish. Also, my dad was laid off five years ago and has been out of work, other than a few temp positions, for this entire time, creating financial hardships for my family. And two years ago, my 8 year old sister was diagnosed with an extremely rare heart condition (less than 30 cases worldwide and each one is very different) in which there is no known treatment and she almost died. She currently cannot have more than 18 grams of fat a day. I look at my parents life and I admire their relationship; they've gone through a lot together, and it takes a lot of love, patience, forgiveness, and loyalty to be able to stay together through it all. When I need someone to talk to, they are always there, especially my mother. She has been a real inspiration to me.

As for my character... from what I've gone through, I've gotten a lot of maturity and self-sufficiency; though I haven't moved out yet, I am at the end of August. I already have a place ready. I've learned life is too short and unpredictable to always plan for the future. It is good to prepare for the future, but it is important to enjoy life right now. I love to dance, sing, write, talk with people, go out and have fun, stay in and have fun... there are times to be serious and times to be light-hearted. I love to laugh and make others laugh. For me, the greatest joy is lifting another person up and seeing her smile. I love helping others with their problems; it gives me purpose and meaning. My number one value in life, friendships, and relationships has been loyalty, and here's my definition of loyalty: always staying true to yourself and honest to another person without ever doing anything to betray his/her trust. My second value is forgiveness: letting go of past mistakes or regrets, giving another chance, and making the choice to trust, even if one is afraid to. Third, love: an endless act of forgiveness where one not only chooses to be loyal, but embraces it.

I'm sorry my introduction was basically an essay... hopefully you took the time to read through this. I am really looking forward to meeting new people and I hope I find that someone special soon, even if she's right under my nose.