The Road goes ever on and on

Down from the door where it began.

Now far ahead the Road has gone,

And I must follow, if I can,

Pursuing it with eager feet,

Until it joins some larger way

Where many paths and errands meet.

And whither then? I cannot say.

Today marks my last day here at Capcom, and the first day of the rest of my journey through life. I debated about whether or not to make this goodbye short and sweet or long and bitter. The good news is that it is certainly not bitter...maybe a bit morose. The bad news for you, is that the writer in me demanded a lengthy goodbye. So without further ado, hit the jump to read my goodbye to Unity! (PS, thanks to Francis for the awesome goodbye picture of me!)

TL;DR: The entirety of Battlestar Galactica, the musical episode of Buffy, and the third season of Torchwood are probably my favorite episodes of television ever. 

Life can take you to unexpected places, sometimes where you least expect it.

Growing up, I always wanted to be an archaeologist like Indiana Jones, or a newspaper journalist, or a novelist. My very Mexican mother quickly put an end to those dreams by telling me that I would die a very poor man if I ever pursued those dreams.

But I kept at it. In high school, I was the editor in chief of the newspaper and the editor of our literary and creative writing society. I returned to the dream of being an archaeologist and pursued my Anthropology degree in college in Los Angeles.

But life can take you to unexpected places.

Along the way, I found myself wanting to do more with life. To be able to give back something to the world. The foreign service called to me and I was all set to start an internship in Ecuador with the US embassy.

And then life threw me a curveball (in the form of my first relationship) and I found myself lost after college with an Anthropology degree. My first job out of school was being a bagger at Safeway, and eventually, I landed a job as an HR Assistant at a floral form in the small town of Arcata, California.

Life can take you to unexpected places.

While I was in Arcata, I searched for jobs in the bay area and finally, a video game company called me in to interview for an HR Representative position. I’ve always enjoyed video games, and this would be a fantastic way to get back to my family and friends in the San Francisco bay area.

I got the job, and then I went into marketing, followed by community management.

If you had told me 7 years ago that I would end up working in the video game industry, I would have scoffed. “That’s a fantasy job,” I would tell you, “like getting into acting or becoming a singer. There’s no way that’s even a possibility.”

But life can take you to unexpected places.

Five years of working in the video game industry has given me a new perspective and has given me the scope necessary for me to focus on my life’s goals.

Video games are a part of my life, but there is so much more that I have yet to explore and challenge myself with. I believe that in challenging yourself, in thinking in new ways, you can achieve your potential and even surpass it.

Which brings me to my leaving.

Working at Capcom has been one of the most positive and unique experiences I have ever had. In these two years I have learned a lot about the industry and about myself. Along the way, I’ve been blessed to be able to work with some of the most talented people that I know (Snow, s-kill, sven, the admin, and more) and I will miss them as I move forward along my path in life.

I’m also deeply appreciative to all of you Capcom Unity members and everything that you’ve done for the site. Thank you for participating and interacting with us. Without you, the site would not exist.

There are moments in your life that define you and shape your future, and I’ve recently allowed myself to be more open to the universe and to all that it has to offer.

Life can take you to unexpected places.

I am moving halfway across the nation to Austin, Texas. I would have never imagined that Texas would be somewhere I would end up, but there is an opportunity there that I have to take for my own personal and career development.

I’ll still be in the video game industry, and I’ll still be checking in on Capcom-Unity (this account will still be active), so please keep in touch.

And now, I leave you all in the very capable hands of Seth, Shawn, Tom, Greg, Christian, and Mark. Treat these guys right, because they certainly dedicate a lot of their time to make you all happy :-)

Thank you all, I’m sure that we shall meet again.

Nothing makes the earth seem so spacious as to have friends at a distance; they make the latitudes and longitudes.

-jgonzo