09/10/04
When my friend Ken gave me a BBI Lucifer figure several years back as
a pun after a discussion we had on toys, little did I realize how much of an
impact that one single event would chang my life in the years to come. The
first year in the hobby, I became extremely addicted. I would spend 8, 10,
14 hours on a single figure. I didn't sleep, I didn't eat, I didn't work .
. . I didn't care. All that mattered was getting that one particular
figure done. I'm a little older, and just a tad bit wiser now (okay, maybe
not wiser) and I've come to realize my existence so to speak. I value the
relationships I hold with my friends, my family, my employees, and my customers
all that much more. "Do I have a point?," you ask?"
I'm getting there.
I've been working in the legal field a long time. One more semester and I would have taken the California Bar and become a lawyer. I made a lot of friends and a whole lot of money, but I realized I didn't care all that much for it. It was a job and a means of putting food on the table, but it doesn't really give me much satisfaction other than a nice paycheck. It might be irony, but I got laid off my job on January 1, 2004 because the economy took a downturn and Silicon Valley companies couldn't make enough money to pay their lawyers.
I used the last of my savings to live off of for about four months and I basically sat around and did nothing except play with my figures, watch a whole lot of movies, play video games and browse the Internet. I did a lot of thinking and before you know it, I took the plunge by taking a loan against my house and do the two things I love most - watching movies and playing with toys.
At the end of August 2004, my dream of doing what I love finally got realized as I opened up a store to sell Asian DVDs and 1/6 scale figures. Below are some pictures of the display I have at the shop at the time of this writing. The shop is located at:
AznFilms
1941 Tully Road, Suite 40
San Jose, CA 95122
(408) 937-7446
If you ever visit California or are in the Bay Area, please stop by and say "hello." There's really not much purpose to this Dawg Bite, other than to tell everyone about my shop really. I like to meet people who live and breathe 1/6 scale also and if you've ever met another 1/6 customizer, you'll know what I mean. It's a very different, and welcoming experience. Talking to someone with your same interest and wants is something no one could ever really explain. Besides, when you see a figure in person, it's drastically different than seeing the same figure in photos. It's a totally unreal experience.
Going back to valuing relationships. . . the
reason I brought it up was because I wouldn't be where I am without
support. Without my wife tolerating the hundreds of figures, weapons, and
vehicles scattered throughout the house, without the more-established
customizers that took the time to talk to me and showed me how to do different
things and inspiring me and without the customers that show continued support
for me time and time again, I wouldn't be here. So here's another
shout-out to everyone. If you're reading this and you know who you are,
thank you all from the very bottom of my heart. ;) CustomDawg,
2004