Today was the first day of my C# class. C# is a .NET programming language, and something I’ve been concentrating on lately. As much as I tout the virtues of Open Source, the easy money is in .NET, and I see no reason to close those doors. Besides, I really like what I am finding in .NET (imagine that).

The class is going well. There are only four students! So, we get to really shape the class direction which is nice. I was worried this would be way above my head since it was an “Advanced C#” class, but so far it’s right on target. Not far above my head, and I’m not bored out of my mind either. I tell ya, one major perk for Corporate America is the training you often get to participate in.

In other news, my back feels like it’s broken! It’s probably because I’m an out of shape fat ass, but nonetheless the pain is wicking my sanity away at a nice steady pace. During a training week! YAY! So, we’ll see how it goes. So far, I’m still in good spirits. How did my back break, you ask? Well, it’s “about that time”. My back gets thrown out about once or five times a year. Usually right in sync with me being out of shape. So, time to get back in shape — not pear shape.

Lastly, I sold my iPod and just wiped that wicked iTunes off my computer. OMG that felt so good. iTunes was programmed by the devil! I swear, it’s like Apple purposely makes their software suck ass on Windows machines. I can hear you Apple fanboys, “so get a MAC!” Yeah, no thanks. I don’t want to pay twice the worthy rate for a computer. Windows suits me fine, thanks. Perhaps Apple should think about making iTunes not suck on Windows since most of the iPod owners are Windows users!!! Yeah, stick that in your pipe, and smoke it, you Apple Hippy Freaks. :D hahahah Kidding of course, you know I love you all!!

So, where have I been? Just doin the same ol same ol. Work has been a bit busy. It has been necessary to work at the call centers this week and last, and that burns me out pretty quick. I like my nice office! Today I get a repreive from the call center smells, sounds, and situations and get to work from my office so this is a nice change of pace.

I’m still plugging away at my studies every chance I get. Trying to breathe new life into my home schedule so I can get many of my side projects goin proper again. One site I’m working on right now was so near completion, and in the same spirit of the apprentice painter always putting that “last stroke” on the painting, I’ve had to tear it completely down and redesign it! Ahhh learning… :-D

Rhys’ big thing lately is fear. He’s scared of everything.  Like EVERYTHING: bugs, shadows, birds, shadows of bugs, being alone, his basketball hoop, the dolphin mobile in his room. You name it, and this kid will jump 20 feet in the blink of an eye! I guess it’s a phase. We are working with him, of course, but it’s slow goin.

He has found his new favorite game. His first real computer game that he fully understands! As a gamer dad, I’m so proud. We’ve been playing Peggle. It’s a PopCap game. If you like puzzle games, I’d recommend checking it out. It’s a good one.

Both Heidi and I have readjusted our outlook on things. Kinda stepped back to look at what is truly important in our lives, where we want to be, etc… So, we’ve redoubled our efforts to get back on track, as we both feel like we may have lost our way a bit. Things are goin good in that area, and we feel like we’ve got some good direction for once in a long time.

Ok… Well, two out of three ain’t bad. I’m hanging at Drew’s place. We’re geeking out, pretending we are accomplishing something, when actually all we are accomplishing is killing off his Private Stock Captain Morgan’s rum, which, by the way, is quite tasty! ARRR! And, it’s not even Talk Like A Pirate Day!

We just installed Windows Core, and found that we don’t have credentials to login… Yep, that’s right, it didn’t give us a place to set up our Admin account… DOH! More likely, we missed it in our drunken stupor… YAY for drunken stupors! :) Boo for work in the morning!

Well, the Thought Dumpster is back. It’s not in full glory at the moment, but it’s functional! :)

Nothing makes you feel older than trying to learn things. Was it always this hard to pick up a new skill? Is it harder to learn because of my age, or maybe because of all the distractions that age has brought along with it…

Either way, I find myself easily frustrated trying to learn the latest skill in my arsenal. Flash. I’ve always wanted to know how to code ActionScript, and use Flash technologies. So, I bought Flash CS3 and am on my first steps toward understanding Flash and ActionScript. Flash of course would fit in nearly all of my projects, but I have a certain special project I’d really like to use Flash technologies in. I really hope I get somewhere with this project, because it’s something I would really like to see become a reality. Here’s to hoping! I’m sure I will be using Slack’s Place as my little Flash sandbox while I am learning. After all, that is one of the main reasons for this site.

Wish me luck and if you have any tips, links, or pearls of wisdom, please drop me a line! :)

Hello there my faithful readers! It’s been forever and a day, and I wanted to just drop a line to say we’re still alive and kicking… The running theme these days seems to be sickness. Rhys has a cough right now, but he just got over (or is getting over) a real nasty stomach bug. It turned him into a human lawn sprinkler if you catch my drift. Poor kid just can’t seem to catch a break! On top of that, Heidi was diagnosed with Bronchitis! YAY! So much for riding this out until we get back on insurance. Chalk that up to another one of my brilliant foresights… I have remained sickness free, which is important when you have a new job.

I’m still working on websites on the side, and have been working with a local politician. A friend of mine and I are thinking of marketing to the local political scene to see if we can drum up some beer money. The market is ripe, and we have the skills. Might as well try capitalizing on it. At the worst it’s a learning experience — such is life.

Not too long ago, Rhys when #2 on the big boy potty for the very first time! So, he got himself a brand new red bicycle! He’s so excited about it. Even in his weakened condition, he insists on riding his bike outside a little bit each day. He gets about two good pedals in and then has to rest to catch his breath and drink some Gatorade! LOL  He’s a trooper! Of course, we don’t let him take it too far! What’s more, with me concentrating on studies, mom seems to be the one taking him out most of the time. I swear I will do more here soon, but studies take priority right now.

Speaking of studies, I’m studying up on .NET programming. Both the Win32 side and the Web App side. It’s so good to be back in Visual Studio, even for my Open Source projects. I have to hand it to Microsoft with Visual Studio, it’s just some bad ass shit. I gave my old copy of Studio to the neighbor kid who has shown an interest in programming — my good deed for the month. Hopefully he doesn’t squander the opportunity to take the free time in his life right now, and get a leg up on the working world.

That’s about it. Nothing too interesting, and I’m sure I am forgetting quite a bit of shit, but I’ll write more in here, I promise. Even if it is fluff, like this. :)