Cleaning and Visitors

Hello everyone!

I hope you all have had a good week so far. My week was pretty busy but relaxing. I had my phone screening on Tuesday. I think it went pretty well, but I’m still waiting to hear back. Hopefully, they want to move forward, but if not it is what it is. I have other opportunities coming up that could keep me more local. I was also able to take my driving test this week. I passed and now I can get my license. It’s been a long time coming, but I’m ready to start driving. The rest of my week was spent cleaning. I was able to move everything from the rooms I needed to and now I can focus on actually cleaning the rooms to get them ready. So that’ll be one of my other projects during the week.

My aunt also flew up to Seattle and has been hanging out. It’s been fun to chat with her and help her out as I can. It’s been a long time since I last saw her so it’s been nice to be around her. We also planned a movie night to have while she’s here so that she can see people. I’m happy that she was able to make it up here even with covid. Slowly travel might get better and easier, but it all depends on how people treat covid. Currently it feels as though some people have forgotten what covid has already done to us. I’m happy that we’ve made progress, but that doesn’t mean we can relax.

Well till next week you guys! I hope you have a good week and that I have more info for you next week.

Trip to Redding

Hello everyone!

I hope this week has been good for all of you. My week was pretty easy. I went on vacation to Redding, California. It’s the first vacation I’ve been on in a long time. For a while the idea of taking time off has been very stressful for me. While working, I never liked taking time off as I was worried, I’d waste my PTO, I’d miss some important work, or it would reflect badly on me. This vacation stressed me out as I have no job, so this would be taking time from me looking for a job or working on my portfolio. I was able to relax on the vacation though and have fun with my family. It reminded me that everyone needs to take time and unwind periodically. You shouldn’t go at 100% constantly and you should take the time you can to relax. It’s all about finding the balance and that is often my issue.

The vacation itself though was very fun. It had some bumps but ultimately it was a good time. I was down in Redding checking out a new property my dad and stepmom are investing in. We were able to spend the week there with my siblings appearing at various points. It was the first vacation in a while that I had been able to join them on and it was a bit nostalgic of our past vacations for me. For the most part we stayed at the house and in the pool, but one day we went to Lake Shasta. It was my first time ever to the lake and it was very dried up. However, we were still able to go jet skiing on the lake. It was my first time ever going jet skiing and it was a lot of fun. I was probably a bit more cautious than I needed to be, but it was fun to go 40+ mph on the lake and explore around. I’ve always loved boating, so this was just boating by yourself.

Well till next time you guys. I hope you guys have a good week and that I have some exciting news for you next week.

New Job and the Time Between

Hello Everyone.

I hope you all had a good past few weeks. I’ve been doing well lately. Today was my first day with Bungie and I’ve begun the training process and have already been able to meet cool people. I’m very excited to see how this job progresses and who all I meet. I will say as with any major change I’m dealing with anxiety. I’m worried about messing up and not making a good impression. However, I’m trying to counter this by reminding myself that I can do it and that it will get better. Soon enough my anxiety will calm down hopefully. I’m also hoping that I’ll be able to meet them all in person safely.

The last week I took off between my two jobs. It was nice to have that break and be able to relax a bit. I was able to paint more figures and print a lot. I also got to spend time with my friends more. I never really understood mental health days as I never felt I needed one. This last week though helped show me how helpful just taking time to relax can be. I would love to say people should try to take the time during this quarantine to relax and focus on themselves. However, I know how stressful this entire situation is and how hard it can be for people to relax. I will always say do what is best for you and your family but remember take a moment to breathe and relax. Try to forget your problems for a moment so that you can heal. It is easier said than done.

Well till next time you guys. I hope you have a good week and are staying safe. I hope to have more news for you in the future.

A Good Work Life Balance

Hello Everybody,

I hope you all have had a good week; my week went fairly well. During the week I had to figure out more of my balance between work, hobbies, and relaxing. Work takes up so much of my time that it can be difficult to find much time for anything else. Even on the weekends my days will get filled with different things for me to work on. I’ve been printing and painting miniatures, working on stories, doing chores, etc. This makes it difficult to find time to just relax. I’ve been managing to keep to my goal so far though. The only thing I haven’t made much progress on is getting my license. I’ve been so busy I haven’t had time to get out and practice driving. Hopefully, I’ll get back into the swing of driving and then take the test so I can get a car. Then maybe I’ll have more time to perfect the balance.

One of the most important things that anyone can do is have a good work life balance, at least in my opinion. You should never let work become your life as I think it can cause resentment and unhappiness. If you do let work become your life, I think it will also cause your productivity and effectiveness to drop at work. That’s why the balance is important. You need that time to relax and step away from work. You need a hobby or two outside of work. To be your best self you need to be able to spend time with friends and family. These better your life and work so much. On different projects I’ve struggled with the balance and found if I focused too much on one the other aspects of my life suffered. There are days where your motivation for a project spikes and that’s good. Those are the days where you can make the most progress on that project and I think that when your work life balance is good you have more moments like that.

Well till next week you guys. I hope you have a good week and that I have something fun to talk about.

President's Day Relaxation

Hello my friends,

I hope you guys had an amazing week. My week was kind of meh. I spent the entire week sick which really hurt my productivity, luckily, I’m at the tale end of my sickness so I should be able to boost my productivity. I’m going to begin learning some new skills and working more in engine with side projects. I’m looking forward to resuming my own personal side projects as well. I’m hoping to keep moving towards getting a job as well. I’ll also begin updating my website again. I want to write more and edit my older stories. I feel that it would be a great way for me to improve my chances of getting a job if I have my portfolio constantly growing. At this point I will continue to go down all avenues to improve myself and my own project goals.

This weekend was nice. I got to relax and rest without being stressed. On Saturday I beat Kingdom Hearts 3. I enjoyed the game a lot and I’m curious to see what the future has for the series. I’ve heard a lot of differing opinions about the game. My opinion is based off being a recent fan of the series, but I’ve noticed people that were fans for years and waited for a decade dislike the game. It could be due to the game not living up to expectations or I’m easy to please. I may write a review on the game I just need to dedicate the time to it. On Sunday I participated in Harry Potter trivia. It was a lot of fun, but sadly I’m not as up to date on my Harry Potter knowledge. My team sadly did relatively poorly and we got I believe 8th place out of 15. It was fun just a little annoying to learn how little I know. Then today was President’s Day which was a great day for me and my mom to hang out and spend sometime together. It was nice as we never get the chance to hangout.

Well til next week my friends. I hope you all have a great week and that I can bring you all exciting news next week.

Continued Career Coordination

Hello everybody!

I hope you guys had a great week. My week went pretty well and was relaxing. I spent the week working on my resume and applying to various jobs. So far I’ve heard back from one company asking me to fill out a test. I did the test and sent it back so I’m hoping to hear from them soon. I’ve also seen more writing jobs which is very exciting so I’ve been applying to those as well. I’m just so excited for everything coming up. All these jobs that could be my next steps and GDC coming up. I’m hoping that nothing comes up that may set me back.

I’ve started trying to work around some of these set backs. I’ve begun using new things to help me stay on track. Such as Screen Time on my phone. This app is helping greatly. Often times when I’m supposed to be working I find myself getting distracted by my phone and having Screen Time on while working has been huge. This has also helped me finish tasks faster so I can spend more time job hunting or working on side projects. I’m hoping to find more solutions to set backs and issues I face.

Well till next week you guys! I hope that I’ll have some really good news for you, and that you guys have a great week.

Week of Rest

Hello my friends,

This past week has been very relaxed and easy. The most stressful parts of this week was the job hunt and the fact the Destiny 2 raid was released. The only reason the raid was stressful was because if you beat it by Tuesday you get access to a special jacket. Sadly, I did not get the raid finished. I will not get that cool jacket more than likely. Other than that my week went pretty well. I applied to several jobs and my cold went away for the most part. It was nice.

This weekend we also had a graduation party for me. It was a bit belated, but it was fun. It was cool to see a lot of people I haven’t seen in a long time. I got to talk to several people I haven’t seen since elementary school. I also got to see one of my oldest friends. My sisters and I always said she was our other sister, and she said we were her siblings. It was the first time we had all been in the same location in awhile. It was also really nice to hear the continued support from my family and friends who all believe in me and want to help me. I look forward to getting out into the industry.

Well till next week you guys. I hope you guys have an awesome week.

Pushing Forward

Hello my friends!

           This past week has been pretty lax. I spent most of it just looking for jobs and talking to my connections. I also met with some friends that I haven't seen in a long time. It's pretty stressful, but I'm pushing forward and keeping my hopes up. I've met a lot of awesome people and have a lot of people who have been kind enough to vouch for me. I'm hoping to hear from some of the companies I applied to soon. Whether it is a yes or no this will allow me to have a better idea of where I'm going.

           This upcoming week is also PAX West. I have been allowed to help at a booth of a friend from GDC. I'm super excited to be at the convention and explore. Who knows I may also be able to meet more people that can help me out. I'm also looking forward to seeing what games and panels will be going on at PAX. All in all I'm sure it'll be an awesome event and I look forward to further exploring it. I'm super excited to check it out!

           Well till next time you guys. I most likely won't be posting till Tuesday as PAX goes until Monday. I look forward to telling you guys about how it goes! Have an awesome week!

Networking and Meetings

Hello my friends,

           This past week has been relatively easy. I spent the whole week traveling around the Seattle area. I've meeting with different people to discuss the industry and possible employment. I was lucky enough to have different people from Full Sail reach out to their contacts for me. Now I'm in the boat of waiting while I continue to improve my portfolio and apply to jobs. I have a few more people I will be reaching out to soon. This upcoming week is going to be a bit more of the same. I'm excited and looking forward to this week.

           This past week two games I worked on were released. One was Fury Strike 80s Beat Down. The game is currently on Steam. I'm proud of the story I wrote for the game and I'm excited to see the game move forward. I've been monitoring it's reception and I'm curious to see how the team reacts. The second game was Tales of Mahabharata. I mentioned it being in early access and now it's in full release. I'm still working on the games story as we have an expansion coming out soon. We recently showed it an event named OrlandoiX. I was told we got a great response and a ton of people want to play. I'm excited for it's progress and to see how it moves forward.

           Well till next week you guys! I hope you have a wonderful week and future!

Memorial Day

Hello my compatriots!

            This past week has been pretty boring. I haven't done much that's too exciting. Over this past week I've really only had class and work. It's been a lot of working and hanging out. I will say I did something that was fun this week. Five of my friends and coworkers, along with myself, started a game of Civilization VI. That was really the most exciting part.

            With today being Memorial Day it's nice having a day off. It's rare for me to have day to relax and just sit around. It allows me to make different changes to my schedule and work on things I haven't been able to. I'm still moving forward with job applications, but it's a little difficult. I'm having a hard time with figuring out what to do. I'm also having a hard time finding the motivation to fully go forward with the job search. I'm hoping to continue and find a way to show my skills.

            Well wish me luck! I hope you guys have a good week and can continue to be awesome.