His universe is full of drawing and color, and creativity is clearly his strong point.
Today at 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮𝗗𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲 we discover 𝗗𝗮𝗻, our 𝗚𝗿𝗮𝗽𝗵𝗶𝗰 & 𝗪𝗲𝗯 𝗗𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 ! In love with travel, a positive nature and with a sense of humor, he is ready to let you enter his world!
What are the first three words you would describe yourself with? With which of these words do you think your friends would describe you?
Easy going. Creative. Sincere. I bet the “Easy going” part would be picked by the majority.
What makes you happy? How does this contribute to your well-being?
Walking. I do a lot of my chores, business via walking. Even commuting to work. It’s healthy, I get to see the world in my rhythm, it releases tensions or worries before or after work and sometimes it helps with the train of thought when I’m on a project.
How did you end up getting your childhood nickname, who gave it to you, and what were your feelings towards it? And since we're at it, can you share it with us?
I was a big fella’ back in my childhood too. The nickname is still present today as well. I’m called “Your highness”, because of my height – 6’3” / 190 cm tall, and you bet I’m still the one who has to get the stuff from “upstairs” to the people “downstairs”.
What taste or smell reminds you of childhood? Do you still encounter this taste or smell today and where?
Grandma’s French fries – still manages to do them to this day. God bless her soul!
What did you want to become when you were little? How did this desire come about? Do you still dream of becoming this?
My dream as a kid, like any other kid who sees something awesome for the very first time, was to be an airplane pilot or a fire fighter. As time passed by, I soon saw the reality of these jobs and I went a different path – the office path, to be precise. Better to be safe than sorry.
What is the most beautiful place you have traveled to?
I’ve travelled through some countries in Europe and I’ve felt some beautiful things here and there, but it got too similar along the way in terms of styles, history and architecture and me and my wife decided for a change of scenery and thus, we went to the USA.
There we’ve travelled in about 12 states (road trip, of course!) , and it was the best and refreshing experience, one of the highlights being Colonial Williamsburg (Williamsburg, VA).
If you were to live the rest of your life on a desert island, what would be the three things you would take with you? What do these things symbolize for you? How would these things help you?
I would take with me:
1. All the survival skills and ideas learned from Chad Zuber.
2. A camera with storage to last a lifetime and solar powered battery.
3. A pet.
As symbols they would be – 1. Survivability; 2. History; 3. Social interaction
If you could have a talent, what would it be? But what talent do you have?
I’m good at drawing. I really get into it once I’m imagining, building ideas and concepts. Apart from this, I’m also casually learning how to play the guitar.
What is it that annoys you the most? What is the reason why it annoys you and how do you manage to calm down?
Driving in my hometown is hectic and brutal if it’s one’s job to do so, but I manage to shake it off quick when I get home or if I take a walk (“Walk it off”, as they say).
Bucharest like any other city that has postponed traffic and real estate infrastructure development till now is facing the consequences of overpopulation, pollution, low levels of state implication and basically indifference overall towards a decent living status.
If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?
I would have enjoyed if I was more spontaneous in most situations. To have ideas or comebacks to defend my opinions or someone else, entertain or even have basic conversation – apart from “How’s the weather?”
What's the weirdest thing you've ever done after a drunkenness?
Way back at a college party, I tried to kiss a girl, even though she had her boyfriend there with her.
Who inspires you? How does this help you in your daily life? What do you think you inspire others?
In a previous interview, I explained that my grandma was a real-life model for me. I’m still going with her for this question. She’s still alive and kicking after all these (87) years. Keeps being active around at the countryside doing chores, and having a simple life – that’s the secret to a healthy mind and long life.
If you could have dinner with anyone in this world, who would that person be? What would you like to know from this person?
My first choice would have been – Queen Elizabeth II. I would have loved to hear her life story but it’s a little bit too late for that now, so I’m going to go for my second choice – Chris Metzen – a primary visionary behind the game worlds of Warcraft, Diablo, Starcraft and Overwatch. We would have a lot to talk about.
If you ruled the world for a day, what would be the first thing you would do?
Make wars not happen. It’s a waste of, basically, everything.
What would you like people to say about you at your death?
Family and relatives:”You were such a good man! May God have mercy on your soul!”
Friends:”Save me a good seat up there!”
Work colleagues:”I am looking forward to not keeping in touch with you! So long!”
If you found out you only had 24 hours to live, what would be the last 3 things you would do?
1. Saying my farewells to my relatives.
2. Leaving a note with clues towards a box with symbolic stuff about my life. (I already have this box made).
3. Going to a quiet place, laying back on a chair and having a drink while waiting for my end.
If you were to invest in something, what would you invest all your money in? What would you like to know from this person?
These times aren’t friendly towards investments, but I would choose real estate for investment. For people, I would choose either my parents or my future kids (from health investments to recreational or self-development investments).
What is the best dish for you when you cook?
Baking Sweet bread or “cozonac”(in romanian). I make it twice a year, for Easter and for Christmas. It lines up with the spirits of the holidays and it goes very well with a glass of red wine.
If you were your boss for a day, what would you do?
Trying to be more close (but not too close) and be a good image / a good role model for the team that I’m leading. Lead through examples.
If you were dating 7 years ago, what advice would you give? How do you think this advice would help you?
Indeed, I was dating 7 years ago. Best advice that I would give myself: ”If only one tries to do all the work, move on.”
What do you think is the first thing people notice about you and what do you think they think about you?
I think people first thing notice my height (1,90m/6’3”) and they try to take advantage of this by making me reach high places for things to get down to them.
If you could be a movie / book / cartoon character, who would it be and what do you think you look like from this character?
I’d like to be part of the “Arcane” series – an animated TV Show based on the universe of The League of Legends video game. I like the art style that was used there. Colorful, vivid, full of life – very attractive on both characters and environment – perfect storyteller. As a character, I’d go for a bulky dude, crafty engineer with a sense of humor. Goggles are a must!
What is the last thing you learned? What else would you like to learn?
I usually listen to a lot of rock music. One of my favourite bands is “Led Zeppelin”. Now, they have a song called “When the levee breaks” – perfect instrumental performance and excellent slow tempo rythm here, but there’s more. I wanted to look up the lyrics to understand and apreciate the song even better and I somehow found out that this is a tribute song to an original version made in 1927. That original song and this one, after it, were both a reference to The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927.
Now that would explain a lot of things like The Great Migration from the South to the industrial cities of the North and the Midwest – a lot of the migrants preferred to move, rather than return to rural agricultural labor that they had to rebuild all over again. Events in history like this (bad, good, whatever the case) are such a good way to build up your general knowledge about anything. I’d like to come across more of these “Did you know?” facts in the future.
What is the principle that you never deviate from? How do you react when people do not respect this principle?
We have lots of sayings here in Romania, two I go well with are: “you’ve made it of sheep”(meaning that - “you’ve made it a pig’s ear or something”) and “to take your heart in your teeth” (meaning “to step up to the plate”). The reason behind those is simple – I like to be sincere/honest. If I mess something up, or I’m responsible for a mistake, I am willing to confess or taking the blame – that’s what I expect of others to do, but that doesn’t always happen now, does it?
What's the weirdest thing you've ever eaten? What made you do this? What else would you like to try?
I wanted to try and see how Tuna Tartar with Risotto tastes. Just to build up a memory in Florence, Italy. The risotto was great, but the meat was very unusual for my taste. Don’t get me wrong, the restaurant handled it very well, it wasn’t soggy, dry or rotten, just that it’s raw meat and for me it’s unnatural to eat it like that.
For “what else would I like to try” question, the answer is – Jellied Moose Nose. I’ve heard it’s an ancient recipe from Canada and Alaska.
What is your guilty pleasure and how does it make you feel?
Ordering take-out or delivery food. I guess it’s a pretty common thing nowadays, just due to the boom it had during COVID-19 emergency lockdown. It’s a relief not having to cook everyday and it’s like waiting for a present to be delivered to you once you open the door for the courier.
What annoys you the most about your job? How would you change that?
On my own tasks and day-to-day solo activities, I’m quite alright, but what bothers me is the work-relationship I have with my team - the lack of overall team synergy and team flexibility on assigned tasks. I think the professionalism and the communication could be boosted by various daily activities (i.e.: brainstorming or thoughts on projects) or quick scrum meetings , either offline (in the office) or online (with cameras on).
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Was this an hiring interview for a job position or just an interview?
Jokes asaide, it’s simple, first of all, I’ll definitely see myself as a father and secondly, I’ll be even higher on the ladder of my current carreer – hopefully focusing on animating game or story characters, concept art and more. I would also include opening a bakery, but we’ll see about that.
If you could eat one dish for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Pizza it’s such a versatile food. You can put whatever you want on that base dough and take care of your hunger. That’s with what I would go.
What is your strangest habit? What do others say about this habit?
Listening to a song over and over again until you get sick of it even though you know this will happen. I guess this applies to others as well, but that’s a habit I cannot take out. When the song shreds, you’ve got to over listen to it.
What is the excuse you use most often? How do you react when others use this excuse?
“I forgot!” – Yeah, that’s one! Even though I’ve written it somewhere or even put reminders in my calendar. What can I say – I like to keep my mind relaxed.
What superstitions do you have?
Don’t go under a leaned ladder (bad luck otherwise) or - more commonly encountered - if you step on a canal lid, make sure it’s your right foot and an even number of holes on it. (good luck).
If you had 2 minutes to sell a pencil for 1 million euros, how would you convince the potential buyer?
I see your “Wolf of Wallstreet” reference here and raise you this: You’re stuck in Romania and at the same time, stuck, in the line at the taxes and fees government institution. It’s the last day when you need to justify your yearly income fees by completing a standard form, that you need to hand in phisically, but you forgot to bring something to write with, and the nearest library shop is, let’s say, 200km away. I’m also in the queue but I managed to finish and I noticed you looking left and right for anything to write with or asking people if they have something, but with no luck. I approach you with my pencil out: “Do you need something to fill out the form? Supply and demand, bro!”
Hesitating, you give me that 1 million euros but now I have to sit in line again, to justify my earning to the state and pay fees and you can play this game with me also and so on.
In the end we would like you to recommend us a book, a movie, a podcast and a holiday destination.
Book or audiobook (your choice): The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
Movie: Wreck-It Ralph or Zootopia – I like animation movies a lot!
Podcast: Unfortunately, I don’t have a podcast I listen to.
Holiday destination: Philadelphia, PA (Apart from the history and the city itself, you’ve got to try the Philly Cheesesteak here)