Sunday Blog about Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness
I have been terribly negligent in updating the blog. I am going to try and remedy that. Again.
For those of you that know me, some of this will make sense. For those of you who kind of know me, this will make me look weak and self-absorbed, and I apologize for that.
I found a job at HSI (Holiday Systems International). QA Engineer. The place was pure chaos with an evil CEO who suffered from bi-polar disorder, Tourette Syndrome, and thought that technology was magic and you could order new whole software systems like you order a cheeseburger at the drive thru. Not the brightest candle on the Yule Tree until he threw a temper tantrum and burnt the Yule tree down. Neat guy.
So I quit. Now, WA State is reviewing my unemployment claim. Probably get denied because I quit. I have officially as of this blog, gone completely broke. BUT, my parents are helping out with bills so I don't lose my car or COBRA or my bank account doesn't bounce like it was a ball of stupid evil bankiness coated in rubber. Such is life.
I had an phone interview and now and in-person interview tomorrow with a local web-based travel company (yes, this industry is big here in Vegas... :-D). Wish me luck. Hopefully this will turn into a decent full-time position with benefits that will take the financial stress off without adding a new dimension in employment stress. Also, as a side note, if you're in the Vegas area looking for a job, check out Phoenix Staffing. Jennaya Fernane is one of THE best recruiters I have ever worked with. Top notch people.
I updated the web site! October Northwest Joomla 1.5.14 and a gorgeous template from Rocket Theme. I am really loving it but every security update from Joomla breaks components! I have the basics going now and will add more bells and whistles once all the developers are on the same track. At least I have Captcha security working. I hate the SPAM!!!
I have re-written Nothing Chance, my attempt at a serial web fiction piece for my In The Shadows of Gaia setting; a dark futuristic universe of magic infused technology. It's posted on the new web site! I need to touch up the ending which should be parts 6 - 8 (I am guessing) and then on to the real story that will be a mixture of the present (in the setting) and flashbacks slowly colliding together to reach the truth. I am hoping to get into a routine soon where I can keep my promise of a weekday web series.
I Found an RPG system in Master Craft (Fantasy Craft to be specific) from Crafty Games that I think is going to give me my balance of crunch, familiarity (for the players), and license-ability. So far I am really impressed.
I finally surrendered trying to get Campaign Cartographer (CC3) working on Vista. I installed Virtual Server, created a VM, installed XP SP 2, updated to SP 3 with all updates, and finally got CC3 working. It's slower but at least it works. Someday Pro Fantasy will get their act together and make my $500 + investment something I can be proud of. Until then my ass hurts and I am a hostage to Pro Fantasy's business plan. If you have XP or access to XP, the program rules. It's just the install/platform limitations that piss me off.
My game plan as of this blog; subject to change on my whim because I am a flaky emotional artist trying to pretend to be normal in a world that is NOTHING close to normal. M'Kay?
1. Get a regular job.
2. Write my fiction and flesh out my sci-fi fantasy setting. Publish it on my web site!
3. Create a fantasy setting with several adventures for Fantasy Craft to establish my publishing company (again) and kick the tires on the system. I have CC3 working with Virtual Server (VM) so I can do some cartography as well.
4. Form a regular roleplaying group here to go through my campaigns before I publish them. Also to have some FUN for 6 hours every weekend.
5. Eventually Crafty Games will come out with a Science Fiction rules-set for Master Craft and I smash Fantasy and Sci-Fi together and fit that to my setting and publish it as a game.
6. The above activities should give me plenty of experience with Adobe, especially In Design so I can do my own layout work.
7. Pay off all my debts.
8. Work out 6 days a week (M-Sat). Get into shape.
9. Be approached to turn my setting into a TV show or movie (or both!).
10. Become a smashing successful creative talent in Hollywood making ridiculous sums of money for my dark imagination.
Make sense? Good. Because I may need some help deciphering it later when I get off track. Thanks!
Yes, I have been fighting my depression. I have lost a few battles recently. I know many people believe that saying everything is going to be OK or saying "just snap out of it" or "do something" or whatever has the best intentions in mind. But it's not that easy. I am trying. I am slowly winning the battle, but the setbacks at this stage can be mind-numbing and devastating. Just bear with me. I am sure I will get back on track soon.
Ciao for now and I will TRY very hard to update more frequently.
- Trent
I have been terribly negligent in updating the blog. I am going to try and remedy that. Again.
For those of you that know me, some of this will make sense. For those of you who kind of know me, this will make me look weak and self-absorbed, and I apologize for that.
I found a job at HSI (Holiday Systems International). QA Engineer. The place was pure chaos with an evil CEO who suffered from bi-polar disorder, Tourette Syndrome, and thought that technology was magic and you could order new whole software systems like you order a cheeseburger at the drive thru. Not the brightest candle on the Yule Tree until he threw a temper tantrum and burnt the Yule tree down. Neat guy.
So I quit. Now, WA State is reviewing my unemployment claim. Probably get denied because I quit. I have officially as of this blog, gone completely broke. BUT, my parents are helping out with bills so I don't lose my car or COBRA or my bank account doesn't bounce like it was a ball of stupid evil bankiness coated in rubber. Such is life.
I had an phone interview and now and in-person interview tomorrow with a local web-based travel company (yes, this industry is big here in Vegas... :-D). Wish me luck. Hopefully this will turn into a decent full-time position with benefits that will take the financial stress off without adding a new dimension in employment stress. Also, as a side note, if you're in the Vegas area looking for a job, check out Phoenix Staffing. Jennaya Fernane is one of THE best recruiters I have ever worked with. Top notch people.
I updated the web site! October Northwest Joomla 1.5.14 and a gorgeous template from Rocket Theme. I am really loving it but every security update from Joomla breaks components! I have the basics going now and will add more bells and whistles once all the developers are on the same track. At least I have Captcha security working. I hate the SPAM!!!
I have re-written Nothing Chance, my attempt at a serial web fiction piece for my In The Shadows of Gaia setting; a dark futuristic universe of magic infused technology. It's posted on the new web site! I need to touch up the ending which should be parts 6 - 8 (I am guessing) and then on to the real story that will be a mixture of the present (in the setting) and flashbacks slowly colliding together to reach the truth. I am hoping to get into a routine soon where I can keep my promise of a weekday web series.
I Found an RPG system in Master Craft (Fantasy Craft to be specific) from Crafty Games that I think is going to give me my balance of crunch, familiarity (for the players), and license-ability. So far I am really impressed.
I finally surrendered trying to get Campaign Cartographer (CC3) working on Vista. I installed Virtual Server, created a VM, installed XP SP 2, updated to SP 3 with all updates, and finally got CC3 working. It's slower but at least it works. Someday Pro Fantasy will get their act together and make my $500 + investment something I can be proud of. Until then my ass hurts and I am a hostage to Pro Fantasy's business plan. If you have XP or access to XP, the program rules. It's just the install/platform limitations that piss me off.
My game plan as of this blog; subject to change on my whim because I am a flaky emotional artist trying to pretend to be normal in a world that is NOTHING close to normal. M'Kay?
1. Get a regular job.
2. Write my fiction and flesh out my sci-fi fantasy setting. Publish it on my web site!
3. Create a fantasy setting with several adventures for Fantasy Craft to establish my publishing company (again) and kick the tires on the system. I have CC3 working with Virtual Server (VM) so I can do some cartography as well.
4. Form a regular roleplaying group here to go through my campaigns before I publish them. Also to have some FUN for 6 hours every weekend.
5. Eventually Crafty Games will come out with a Science Fiction rules-set for Master Craft and I smash Fantasy and Sci-Fi together and fit that to my setting and publish it as a game.
6. The above activities should give me plenty of experience with Adobe, especially In Design so I can do my own layout work.
7. Pay off all my debts.
8. Work out 6 days a week (M-Sat). Get into shape.
9. Be approached to turn my setting into a TV show or movie (or both!).
10. Become a smashing successful creative talent in Hollywood making ridiculous sums of money for my dark imagination.
Make sense? Good. Because I may need some help deciphering it later when I get off track. Thanks!
Yes, I have been fighting my depression. I have lost a few battles recently. I know many people believe that saying everything is going to be OK or saying "just snap out of it" or "do something" or whatever has the best intentions in mind. But it's not that easy. I am trying. I am slowly winning the battle, but the setbacks at this stage can be mind-numbing and devastating. Just bear with me. I am sure I will get back on track soon.
Ciao for now and I will TRY very hard to update more frequently.
- Trent
ryu:
It sounds like an excellent game plan to me! Don't forget to invite us all to the awesome parties you will have once you're a Hollywood mega-talent 