November 27th, 1978; Camden Kieran Carreira was born as the last of three children to the Carreiras, as he followed his four years prior born sister Kayla, and another four years earlier born brother Patrick. As the youngest, of course, Camden had no choice but to become as smart mouthed, quick witted and thick skinned as any youngest sibling, since he certainly wasn't more pampered or special because of that, no, he was the butt of many a joke of his siblings.
During his childhood, Camden had the uncanny ability of never formally getting into trouble, even though there was quite some he caused. He just never was the one caught at the scene of crime, he simply had a talent when it came to talking other kids into doing the most stupid things. A talent he has kept up to this day, actually. The only one who ever caught on was his mother, occasionally because his siblings had ratted him out, and she was always less than happy about it.
From a young age on, Camden developed a love for Hollywood, and James Bond was his personal hero. It's likely he picked up more of his traits from those movies than anything else, and at least in his head he'd thought himself just as smooth -- and even while he does qualify as quite charming and suave, he couldn't order 'Shaken, not stirred' without looking like an idiot, frankly. Either way, while Camden would have loved to become James Bond himself someday, he's opted for a different approach to Hollywood; he wanted to become an art director somewhere in Los Angeles, rather.
Things, of course, didn't quite work out like he had intended. He signed up for art school in Boston, and while all should have been well, it didn't take too long for Camden to realize that he didn't want to surround himself with that kind of people 24/7, especially not if those got ahead that already had the money to back them up, or those who had something going with the professors. Although he was always short on money, he opted for off-campus housing, which was slightly out of his monetary range--he ended up sharing an apartment with J.D. Grady and his boyfriend to make ends meet. At least for as long as possible, and once he had just about enough of art school, he dropped out for good and made the move to Los Angeles.
At first, Camden wasn't sure what he should do with his non-existing degree and eye for art, and far too little money in his pockets, but more on a whim than as a conscious decision, Camden joined a small photography business. It wasn't what he would have wanted, but it was a job with a more or less steady pay check and bonuses whenever big orders came in, and Camden wasn't complaining. Moving to Los Angeles also marked his acquaintance with Petrus, who would become his first and likely last long-term relationship. They were as perfect for each other as they were horrible together, as the neighbors could likely attest to, but they somehow lasted through three years of thrown pottery and sabotage.
Amazingly, his work didn't suffer through that time, and after a while, just working under someone else wasn't quite enough for Camden anymore, who always had bigger plans (to the point where one could very safely say he's lost touch with reality), and he wanted to open his own studio -- the owner of the one he had been working for was planning on retiring, and Camden didn't hesitate to take over when offered the chance. And while, as a sarcastic know-it-all, Cam wasn't meant for working in social settings, he has made some sort of name for himself among the 'gay crowd' of the city for being a photographer at gay events, weddings and social gatherings. No matter how much he hates them, he can play nice when he's aptly paid.
» Somehow manages to be in debt every third month of the year, and is generally incapable of handling money for long times. Would lend someone a thousand dollars and forget about it within three days.
» Practically blind without his glasses (or contact lenses when working), and thereby a hazard to himself and everyone around him when he cannot find them. They are also a painful reminder that the days of being twenty are long, long gone.
» Wants the whole growing old, settling down, and maybe even having kids shebang, which he would never admit out loud. Doesn't go very well with the fact that he wants another relationship like a hole in the head.
» Entirely incapable of living healthy. In between the smoking and drinking, will forget to eat for days on end.