I am Jerrick Flores, a game developer currently in the Los Angeles / Santa Monica area working on the most amazing game experiences I can. Position wise, I am best described as a Technical Designer, as I have ability to view problems from the perspective of someone with technical knowledge (as per my Computer Science background), or view problems through a creative lens to craft a specific emotional experience; as well as act as the liaison between individuals of both mindsets due to my penchant for interpersonal communication skills.  

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Put simply, I am a social craftsman. To me, the best things in the world are shared with others because of that uniquely human connection that forms from experiencing/creating a memory with someone else. Going out and partying is great and all, but it is the more intimate moments that I truly cherish. The couple of minutes where you and friends sit in silence watching the sun set over the horizon. The hour or two where you and another person lean on a balcony railing talking about life under the stars. The ever-too-short drive from one place to another where everyone in the car jams out to Smash Mouth's All Star. Truly human moments. 

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Consequently, I also believe the best things to "craft" are things that can be shared with others. As such, one my most loved hobbies is cooking. Preparing a meal that nourishes the bodies and souls of others and  brings them together results in this amazing feeling of validation and satisfaction that is only known to the chef. Even more so, there is something mesmerizing about taking what may seem like completely disparate ingredients and combining them together to form some wonderful unison. In a way, that last statement can also apply to people as well. I will acknowledge that is sounds really cheesy (no pun intended), but for me, I find great happiness in being able to bring people together.

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Finally when it comes to any kind of crafting, there is always great joy in passing that knowledge on through teaching others. While I did not need to at the time, in the summer between my last semester of high-school/undergrad and graduate school I took on a full-time job teaching programming to high-school/middle-school aged (and younger) students in a summer camp ( Tech Garage : STEMHQ.org ). Coding is a more formal craft of course, but I taught these students programming concepts and logic using Python. Ultimately, in just one week, these kids would learn how to code Python and apply that new knowledge to create a control script to pilot a tethered underwater drone from a land-locked Raspberry Pi control box (all assembly by me!). Past that, I currently am also an adviser/mentor for my dual-enrollment program specifically assisting Computer Science students in pursuing non-traditional software development paths and research.

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Apart from crafts and teaching crafts, another passion I have a soft spot in my heart for is Asian culture, more specifically, Japanese pop culture. Anime is always a great way to past the time and there is a huge variety of genres to watch (though in my opinion, romcom slice-of-life is the best); I always have something to read with manga and light novels; and there is just something charming about spending hours on a JRPG. In truth, some of the greatest lessons I have learned have been from Japanese media. I started the Asian Culture Club at my high school and have even taken Japanese Tea Ceremony and Taiko Drumming classes.

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All in all, it is all about experience. Sharing experiences with others, creating things people can experience, passing on my experience, or just experiencing what life has to offer, these are the things I live for - I live to experience.