Have you ever had one of those times in the shower when you're sittin' there washin' your hair and you come across this great epiffany that'll seemingly end all the problems in your life or in the world or both?

Well, I did.

I started thinkin' about how I get annoyed with the corporate setting of EB Games/Gamestop and thought, "Damn, how nice it'd be if we didn't have to go through so much crap to get things done the way they want it to be done."  They want us to push 8 gazillion different things in the course of 1 minute.  "That game doesn't come out for awhile...you can pre-order it!" or "I can put a one-year protection on that game for (x amount of dollars)." or "Bring in your old games to trade in!" or "Hey, you have our discount card?" or "You know you wanna get the strategy guide..." or "I got a used copy of this game for less..." or "Yeah, this'll be a game to consider getting (even if it's the worst game ever, advertising apparently pays)"...  The list of crap we go through goes on and on and on...  It would be nice, for once, if I didn't have to worry a moment on any of that stuff, so I could just talk to people, find for them what they want, help them with any questions/concerns/problems they have...  I want to help people, not be a pre-programmed jerk made to push as much crap onto them as quickly as possible...

So I got to thinkin'...how do I get around all of that crap?  Start up my own store.  Get some good, generally-knowledgable people to work with me, carry everything we possibly can (that's worthwhile at least), and just help people get the games they'll want to play and enjoy.

And, from there, I started thinkin', "Man, I freakin' hate the media for making it out to seem that everyone that has ever played a game, even something like Pac-Man, should be shot and burn in hell for all eternity."  So what can I do to overcome that "image"?

Support the community.  Support charities.  Have video-game-related events that'll end up somehow benefitting these. 

What kind of events?  Tournaments. 

What tournaments to have?  I dunno, some stuff out of an arcade.

How do I get access to an arcade?  Make my own.

And, so, my dream was suddenly constructed while I stood there rinsing the shampoo out of my hair.  The first video game...place...that does what it can to help out people in whatever ways possible.

The only problem left is figuring out how to get all of it to work...  I gotta make enough money to live and pay my employees...and raise as much money as I can for these different charities and funds and whatnot.

I'm now tryin' to figure out which charities I should donate to.  First and foremost, St. Judes.  I really do like what they're doin' and would like to help them out in anyway I can.

Secondly, American Cancer Society.  Hell, I'm alive because of the organization, per se; they saw it fit to put my name on a memorial of all the cancer survivors (at the very least out of my hometown)...  I really do have a vendetta against cancer I'd like to wage.

From there...  I dunno.  Perhaps the main Multiple Sclerosis fund...or the fund regarding Myleodisplasia...  I definitely want to donate to area schools, too.

It just feels so right...  It seems like it could work.  I would like nothing more than to see this establishment take form and start helping others as soon as possible.

...And so, I must change my major to enterpreneurship.  Forget about computer science, it does only so much.  Forget about chemistry, there are others that are much more qualified and motivated than I am about it.  I will find a way to have video games bring people together and help fight a common foe.

Please, if anyone is interested in helping with this establishment, I would be more than honored to have whatever assistance I can get, even if it's as little as pledging your participation in the events this establishment will offer.