Onward and Awkward

Happy Holidays! Though belated, I hope everyone had an enjoyable Thanksgiving.

I've gone through a few goodbyes recently that I wasn't expecting nor prepared for. Comings and goings, however, are by their nature subjective. No story has truly ended to all of the players. Ultimately, I have confidence that everyone involved will go on and continue to do great things. Doors close, windows open, and those with wisdom find the way forward. As Einstein said, "in the middle of difficulty lies opportunity."

I used much of this past holiday to reset. I've never been one to sit idly for too long, however, so resetting has given way to new projects. I'm practicing C++ with a calendar program (good regex practice), painting some 40K minis on commission (slowly), and catching up on some C.G. Jung. Joseph Campbell was my introduction to Jung, so it's only fitting that he edited the collection I've chosen to review: The Portable Jung. Any fiction writer would benefit from this book. The insights into the human experience, the resonance of childhood, the shared symbols of mythology, feel strikingly true and powerful. Once I finish with Jung, I plan to move on to Marie-Louise Von Franz's The Interpretation of Fairy Tales. Yeah. We're gonna get all archetypal up-ins.

At work, I've been thinking about the problem of balancing planning versus implementation. I'm a big fan of "failing fast:" don't worry if your solution is optimal. Implement, see where you erred, then correct. This mentality saves you from the trap of indecision and infinite postponement of implementation. The problem is that, honestly, I'm not the best implementer. I'm focusing on improving my CS chops because I tend to get muddled up on syntax and data structure. I may be working towards failing fast. Until then, I have faith that proper planning and support of my team members will carry us through. As we've said before, weighing principle versus pragmatism will lead you to the best solution.

I've gotten some very positive feedback regarding my Maya 2012 review in Game Developer Magazine, which is fantastic. I hope to find more writing opportunities soon. Speaking of opportunities: if you are a talented Maya Character Rigger and are looking for work, please let me know! Riot Games and I would very much like to hear from you. :)

Cheers, and here's looking forward to the new year.