"Hi! My name is (what?)"

Hey there. My name's not Slim Shady. It's Joshua Shortridge.

Instagram: @joshuashortridge  Facebook: Joshua Shortridge

(Sorry about the bad image quality, I don't have a decent camera with me at the moment.)

Who am I and how did I get here?

Well, seems like I'm in a proper state to answer this question. Proper as it's gonna get at least. I'm sitting at 24 years old at the moment. Haven't done much with my life yet but I've done a thing or two. I grew up in Orange, California. I spent the majority of my youth here, getting into just enough trouble to keep things interesting but I've done alright overall. Earlier this year (May 2017) I quit my trade of the past five years (Machining) and sold my truck and moved to Cambodia. 

I went to Cambodia with enough money saved to live off of comfortably for six months. I wanted to think about what to do with my life and focus on my artwork. In Cambodia I began doing freelance illustration and graphic design here and there, not making enough to live off of, but making some money from my art for the first time was gratifying. I ended up getting my hands on some tattoo equipment, and after lots of study I taught myself to tattoo by first tattooing myself, then tattooing my friends and housemates. It was fun and I took every precaution to make sure everything was clean and sanitary.

Tattooing was awesome but I decided I didn't want to pursue it further. Believe it or not it's a very stressful way to make a living and it wasn't for me. So I continued to make artwork and think. Eventually I ended up moving back to California (now) and here I am. Shortly after arriving back I nearly fell victim to a cashiers check scam, thinking I was being offered a promising job as an illustrator. Now I'm sitting here writing this. Currently unemployed but doing alright. After all this introspection I've come to make a few decisions about the direction of my life. I am very passionate about art, but I also love computers, and have chosen to go to college and get a bachelors degree in computer science. I've already been studying the subject via MIT's OpenCourseWare, but having always done poorly in school, I think I'd like the degree anyways. I'm sure the degree would pay itself off.

Well, this introduction has carried on long enough. It's a pleasure to have found this community and I look forward to contributing my artwork, ideas, as welling as reading about all of yours.

Cheers! And thanks for reading.

Sincerely,

Joshua Shortridge