Ever since I was a little kid I wanted to make video games. I always found video games interesting and thought making them would have been fun. Anything associated with video games I wanted to do. My parents always told me I was wasting my life with them but it was my hobby and I enjoyed doing it. In school computer class was anyways my favorite and best class in school. The teachers would ask “How do you get your work done so fast?†I didn’t know what to say everything always came natural to me. The more I learn about web design and coding the more I get interested in the work.
Before I went to VoTech I always made little websites off of hosting networks. I learned all of the basics of coding of a website from that one site. When I went to VoTech I was already ahead of everyone from doing this for a few years. My teacher was so impressed that he didn’t believe me when I was done with all my work before everyone else. Other than not believing me he forced me to join SkillsUSA my first year for web competition. At first I didn’t really want to do it because I didn’t believe I could do it. The day of the competition my partner didn’t show and I had to use some random girl that day. When I got there everything about it was easy, I was worried for nothing. That year I took third place only because I listened to my partner instead of actually doing what I wanted to do on the web page. The next two years after that I joined SkillsUSA on my own, did the competition, and I never placed below third.
All the years i have been in the competitions my most challenging one would have been my second year. Before I went to my competition I had to pick up my partner in my grandmother’s car. I had to go get him at 6:00 AM in the morning. We both were nervous to get there and see what we had to do. Also this was our first time working together and we didn’t know how we would do with each other. When we got to VoTech we both went to see our teacher and talk to him a few minutes before we had to work. Finally it was time, we expected 5 teams to be there but only one other showed up. We were relieved that we only had to compete against 1 other team. The judges begun to read the rules to us and then we was ready to start. In the competition we had great team work; I called most of the shots. My partner did all of the images while I worked on the coding. As we went on we followed all of the instructions to make the web site and text to put inside it.
When we were finished we had to go get lunch but we forgot to bring one. So the VoTech was nice enough to give us a free lunch. When everything was done we was free to go home but we stayed to talk to our friends. After that day I was relieved it was over.The day after the competition the announcements called all SkillsUSA competitors to the front office. The computer programming competition was the last ones to receive the reward so we had to wait while everyone received theirs. Finally the instructor called our names and before she said what we placed she told us how great of a job we did. I was scared we didn;’t win but then she handed us a gold medal and I smiled. Me and my partner received first place and had earned us a place in the states competition.
My second year competition was my most memorable one of them all. It made me believe in myself that I do have what it takes to become a professional web designer if I put my mind into it. All of my life I wanted to play with computers, I even went to school for computers so I could be around them. I didn’t know if I had what it takes to become a designer but that competition is the reason why I put so much of my effort into school now. It motivated me for learning and also thought me that hard work is always rewarded.
By Josh, 18
Recorded at Allegheny Intermediate Unit on January 31, 2011
Description: A short story about my life and motavition
Tweet