Tag Archives: novel

Easter… and Life After School

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Happy Easter! I would say more, but it seems awkward. I’m try not to flow all over the place with emotions if I can (Yeah, whatever dude one glance at your blog is like listening to a emo-kid.), and so… If you are not the religious type, I hope you enjoy your time off and that one day you find the meaning for life. If you are religious, I hope you find the way for a peace-filled, prosperous and happy life. If you are Christian (just like me bro…) well we already know about God and Jesus, and how cool He is, and is love… in that case may He bless you and keep you this coming year. After all Easter is about His undying love for humanity. (And if you feel awkward, and are looking at me awkward, then go read G.K. Chesterton’s Orthodoxy. And stop looking at me that way.)

This Easter was a time of contemplation, self-reflection (Hey, its dark and empty in here!) and a soul-washing. Needless to say, after some scowling from my folks for past wrongs, an awkward confession with a priest, and some quality sulking (And depression) I feel much more empowered and tranquil. I know exactly what I need to do and how about dealing with my issues. So I’m in a bit of zen-like state. Only its not Zen, Buddism or anything resembling an Eastern philosophy. Nope, it good ole’ bible thumping (As if he reads the Holy Scripture.) Christianity. Now if only I could stop feeding myself on cake, and bouncing of the walls long enough to actually, like concentrate on prayer and stuff…

Its been 6 days since the last day of classes, and 5 since my last assignments. I feel very, very relaxed by those thoughts. I mean I just have 3 exams to deal with and then I will be done by Computer Science major. I’m debating whether or not to do either a major in Biology or a specialist in Bioinformatics or just finish university already. I’m leaning toward bioinformatics though… cause micro/cellular is flipping cool.

I actually have done work since my last post. I’m so impressed. I am productive, things are getting done, and my boss (and good friend) Keith is no longer unimpressed. I just need to keep this up. I got a unique job at my previous employer. Its not a development position, rather an office-rat job but I can try my wings at living/working in an office. Fortunately I already am familiar with the people I will be working with/under, so I will feel like a pea-in-a-pod. Awesome. I am thinking of getting a future job as a part developer/specialist in biology. I think that a synergy of biology, informatics, cybernetics and engineering will happen real soon in the future. I want to be part of it. Either that or get a job at NASA as a mission specialist/drone consultant. 😉

OK, this being my last semester of computing, programming has reached the natural and normal peak of being enjoyable work. I’m no longer obsessed by coding, yet I am still willing to develop useful applications as a hobby. I final realized what I thought was unobtainable. I’m competent in a number of languages, both ordinary and exotic. I can develop complex applications in the fields of Web, Internet, database, graphics and entertainment programming. I can think methodically, in a mathematical manner. I’m organized enough handle various styles of development. However, I still think my talents in biology, and communication could definitely use some work. And my personal and business skills need some polishing.

Talking about personal skills, I’ve picked up some tips and hints about dating. Definitely want to try those out sometime. I may not be a Don Juan (yet), but I think I have enough charm to keep a girl distracted long enough that she might tag along with me. (My calmer and less clingy self has gotten more looks, even from Kat… which she will deny to no end.)

In other news… Rudy wrecked his old Saturn and recently bought a “newer” Saturn wagon. Now the questions are has he learned his lesson (turned over car and upset but mostly unhurt friends inside) about “racing”, will those 6 demerit points make him a cooler headed driver, and how long will his new set of wheels live? My friends are begging me to enroll in a summer course with them, cause I would be ever so cool to be with. My financial outlook is looking very good, meaning I’m seriously looking into getting a car and pay for the insurance myself. I’m going to triumphantly return back to developing one of my started open source projects. Also plans are underway to finally write one or two novels this summer. So things should get interesting very, VERY soon.

Finally a shout to shaka0070. Thanks for telling me about Content-Type.com I will definitely take a look at that site. And thanks for reading! Now I got to run, I need to prepare for tomorrows’ Operating Systems exams. [Dramatic music.]

To be continued…

Mayan Nightmares and Lazy Dreams

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Yesterday was both a rather eventful and uneventful day simultaneously. I did not get much done, but instead I had a pleasant chat with Mike. The usual science fiction, writing, and social issues chat, which I enjoyed greatly. I think I might have come off as conservative, hardhead… and there is nothing wrong with that. We discussed everything from the state of fiction, the state of states, and just other random stuff. Anyhow, this chat was a welcome change in mood for me. Earlier that day I tried to catch the attention of Katarina, and while for a moment I thought I had gained some ground. Then it died off again… oh well. Rudy told me to let her go, but she is only person I can actually practise on. No I am not the person to just go up, and serendipitously ask ladies out. Anyways, talking with Mike cleared my head of those thoughts. I actually want to go off and write a novel now too. (Alas time where are you?)

From the university scene, the requirements engineering assignment is due this Friday. No I have not really worked at it, and I am not motivated to do extremely well on it. I will probably end up staying up tonight to do it. Databases nothing exciting happened. We finally got our assignment for visual computing. One of the parts we have to do a 30 min. short animation in Maya. Not too impressed since I have to use the Personal Learning Edition to do this. I am familiar with Blender, and would rather use it. I stayed up yesterday figuring out a way to use Blender and final work in Maya. Alas, the PE version does not have a 3DS plugin, and Blender does not yet support Alias’ FBX format. A real shame. The only positive light to all of this was, the fact that I can still make my models in Wings3D. That is good… unfortunately I still have to learn how to use Maya PLE. I have not decided upon an animation as of yet either.

Finally I actually did some Datasphere yesterday. Not a gigantic amount, but still it is progress. I will do the bulk of my task today. The rest of the time I will delegate to the 340 requirements report. I will have to continue reorganization first, before I get serious with any other work. In the gaming universe, I killed my first Yeti yesterday in Kingdom of Loathing. Then I noticed the Bounty for Yeti and Penguin fur… and I went nuts. I am proud of being able to level up, and to increase my meat amount by 100% in one day. 😉 Now I will probably continue with one quest, and level up so that Yeti hunting is a single strike issue. After that I am planning to open up a store, and upgrade the clan with the gained meat.

Other all I am feeling in good spirits, but extraordinarly tired. I assume that my writing shows this. Anyways, I have to run off to do some chores, and work on all this stuff.

Rain on my Window

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Morning again. The rain outside gentle patters on my windows, smearing the world into a watercolour-like painting. Dream-like. Same way I feel today. Nevertheless I must quicken my typing if I want to get anything else done this morning. I will probably be going on a pleasant 2-3 day camping and kayaking trip along the Masquash river so this maybe the last entry I will have time to write before the eve of school.

Yesterday, I managed to sneak in a bit of preparatory work for university. I managed to switch a course that I by mistake chose. Later on in the evening I convinced Rudy one of my friends who gave me rides last year to class. Now all I need is someway of returning on Wednesday back home. I am also planning to get a new wireless card, as I will not have the time to fix the old one. Other than that I just need to get into two tutorial sections, and get my books. As for actually reading up before coming to my first lecture. Well that is not going to happen probably.

Unfortunately I could not get anything done on my software projects due to lack of time. I do not know if I will be able to work on them again until next week. And only then when I do not have any assignments or course work to do. On the plus side I managed to write up almost all of the factions that will be in my novel. As for a glossary of made-up words. Well I will leave that for later as I write the novel. Its kind of unfortunate that I can not bring my laptop with me for the trip, as I would be able to get more writing accomplished that way. Sigh…

Yesterday, I walked down a beautiful white sandy beach around the Long Point region. The soft squishy feeling of my feet impacting with the wet sand that stretched down the surf. A fresh breeze blew from across the lake, whipping the water into turquoise and indigo waves. The tan, foaming, sand laid-en breakers rushed up and down the beach. Every so often, a larger wave flowed over my feet up past my ankles with such force, that the water sloshed up onto my knees. And so I walked down the beach in a leisurely pace. The sun blazing in the clear sapphire sky. The wind tugging at me. And the surf washing over my feet.

Then we went to London, to see my brother’s orthodontist. He also asked to see me, and said that my backward jaw was also fixable. Yes, overbites without the use of surgery. The cost… $5800. Ouch. Out of my own pocket. Ouchie-ouchie-ouch! Then forth to the local Costco where I found a tempting offer. Twenty dollars for Myst IV. I only left it for the sake of my own project, Insomia, so that the game’s ideas would not influence my own. Sigh…

The rain has stopped outside. Now the world is clear to see through the minute drops that cling to my window. Time to move on.

Being is in Mechanical Harmonic is Not Fun

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I think I can say that this is the last remnants of my malady. I can say this by the increase of sinus induced headaches and the symptoms of hay-fever. Also my throat no hurts… and so forth. Yesterday was OK too… except in the morning where I felt not too hot. Oh, and it was Mother’s birthday. Oops… I forgot everything about it. Anyways after a bit of coaxing I went with them to Awenda Provincial Park. Which was enjoyable as it was mostly me loafing around on a beach doing mostly nothing except writing. Then we went kayaking on nearby Kettle Lake. The sensation of gliding silently across the still water, gazing at the strange forest of dried pine mingled with water lilies, and grasses… serene. No unusual wildlife was seen but that is alright too.

When it comes to writing, I began to jot down notes about the different characters, factions, and plot of my story. I decided upon the title to be: Echoes in the Ether. I changed the beginning a bit, and made the background history interwoven in the conversations and thoughts of the characters. While I did notice a fair bit of influence from Battlestar Galactica (especially with the robotic Daedus faction), and the Homeworld games, I still think my idea as a whole is fairly unique. I am also glad that in the process of creating my universe I managed to get rid of the whole “Pregenitor” race idea, and still kept the Maker in the story. I hope that I can get the right mix of high tech science fiction and mystical religion as a backdrop for the story. I don’t want to turn into a fantasy story by adding too much crazy magic and mysticism. Overall I have most of the backdrop finished, I just have to finish notes on the last two factions. Then I have to jot down the back story, some technological details, and bit of landscape details. After that its just main character descriptions and plot.

On the programming front, I didn’t get much done except removing CHARVA and CLI elements out of the justCheckers code. The old style stream messages are still there. Maybe I can make a user interface from that. As for school preparations, a big fat zero. Oh well…

Out of the Abyss and into the Clouds Again

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Hello, hello again, dear reader and fellow blog-journeyer. Finally had the heart to write an entry again. The last few days since the last entry and this one, I had a bout of depression arising from an all time low self-esteem and self-worth. Today, when I got up to work today I thought today would be the same old low. But no. I got up late, but not tired and with a full reserve of energy. Didn’t really need my customary early morning French Vanilla coffee. But hey, it is customary.

Work itself was exasperating as always. My machine ran OK except for one place where the material would fold up… and everything would die in the messiest way. The lead hand, Malkait tried to fix it. But the machine had its day, and the lead hand got on my nerves. Again. He is a really nice guy, but an utter fool and has the perpetual illusion that his way is always right. I play along since I really don’t care about work, and am not in the mood to stir up problems. Beside I got to finish earlier since I ran out of material. Hey! Who’s your daddy now, T-3?

I have only three more days left of work. Sunday, Wednesday and Thursday and then… freedom 22!!! Now that in itself isn’t would seemed to end the vicious cycle of defeatism. I started to write up that novel I was talking about. I don’t have a title for it yet, but who cares when I actually have a plot, characters and everything else falling into place. This is really exciting, and maybe I will add a bit more content later on Today after I get ready for work tomorrow.

Another success was that my Dad fixed my Palm yesterday, so today I had my precious music. Yay! To top it all off, I actually can keep up my hackey-sack for more than four hits. In fact, I feel like I have been better today, than ever. Now only exhaustion is holding me back, as I got a hold on the technique and the rhythm of the game. I am exhilarated by all of this. I hope tomorrow will be just as good as today. (Maybe I should ask out Kat today, since today seems like my lucky day. Or am I just pushing things again?)

Last Work Night Week

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Yay!!! My last week of nights begins today. Wow this summer did go by fairly fast. And unproductively (on the part of my pet projects). But that is about to change.

As for house work today: washed dishes, dug a frozen dinner out of the freezer, and cut the hedge (really proud of that last one). Anyways, I also finished up all the blogs that I missed out on. So go ahead and read through the archive. If you dare.

I plan to get some justCheckers, Insomia, Palm programming and writing work done. But I don’t know in which order. I guess I will work on that sci-fi novel I started recently, xNihlo. It is a mix of my short stories, and a story of a Terran inflitration officer on board one of the deep sea trinit-ships looking for an Neurocis saboteur at work. The whole story will takes place in the far future after the Great Soliation (whats that you say?) in the strange sea world inbetween the ice sheet and unforgiving depths of an ice giant, Trinik Prime. (Got your attention yet? Good!)

Happy Birthday Canada

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What a day. Dead tired and had to bake some stuff for my brother’s trip tomorrow. Later got some sleep and I am ready for work. Yay! And on Canada Day. And such a beautiful day too.

Discussed my current writing project with Dmitri yesterday. Now I am confident about this novel. Should be good.

Silent Running

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Sorry for not writing sooner… The excuse is the overused “I didn’t have time to…”. That of course is not the real reason. While physical exhaustion is a factor, it was really because I was angry and upset. I find that writing comments in such a states often just makes things substantially worse.

However I will not be writing blogs as often as I would like to. This is because I am writing a novel nowadays. So I will concentrate on that for a while.

As for news, my Dad finally got a cellphone. I finally got a high speed broadband Internet connection and an excellent router to go with it. Yummy emerges from home. And Mom finally got a multifunctional printer, scanner and copier. And it looks more robust than the last one. So now I got a new (old tabletop one) scanner.

Met this guy Bart who is my age and goes to Waterloo University. He is studying Software Engineering and seems pretty cool. We talked and played three rounds of Legends. Naturally my Dad is giving me trouble about this. And all my explanations are inadequate for him. And now the laptop confescations and the “why do you have any non-educational games installed” are beginning anew. Sigh…

Silence Revisited

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Well I am up for another gorgeous work night. Was so humid and warm today that I could only sleep for 5 hours today. Parents and brother have gone today to one of my brother’s folk dance performances, so the house is quiet today. Doesn’t even feel like a weekend day. The highlight of today was an episode of Stargate. Not a very exciting one mind you… Lets hope this night will be a short one.

Anyhow I will get to work on my novel writing.