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…in two years…

Saturday, January 7th, 2012 at 7:15 pm

To recap…today is a special day for me. It’s the 2 year anniversary since I quit World of Warcraft. I know, it seems stupid in retrospect or hindsight that I would celebrate something like this. But World of Warcraft was an addiction of mine…and life’s been great since kicking the habit. I wrote another post last year on this day about the one year after I quit WoW. This is a followup post to that….tradition, if you will.

What did I ask myself at the end of …one year ago…

How much will change by Jan 7, 2012?
What will I accomplish?
How will my life have changed?
What will I have figured out?

What I’ve done in the last year

worldofwarren.com (previously warrenshea.com)

  • New Google+ Theme on worldofwarren.com
  • Got worldofwarren.com domain and moved content from warrenshea.com to worldofwarren.com
  • Heavily cleaned up code on worldofwarren.com
  • Fixed old themes on worldofwarren.com

I was able to separate my site into 2, a personal and professional site. Just what I wanted to do this year :) Not that it was hard…and this…

warrenshea.com

  • Almost done

….yeah, this is almost done. :D

Blogging
187 posts between Jan 7, 2010 and Jan 7, 2011. On average, roughly 15.58 posts/month. The number actually falls almost too perfectly inline with my hope of 150-200 posts this year (that I wrote I wanted in my …in one year… post). FYI – Last year’s stats were: 300 posts since my first one, on Jan 26, 2010. On average, roughly 25.25 posts/month.

Twitter
2831 tweets since Jan 18, 2010. 1345 since Jan 7, 2010. Just shy of what I did last year (1486). As expected.

Improved development skills
I definitely did NOT improve my ASP.NET C# skills and only improved my PHP by a little bit.
I had a good amount of improvement on HTML5, CSS3, and jQuery while building warrenshea.com
I’ve also learned quite a bit about Web Accessibility knowledge due to a large project at work.

Reading

  • Dragon Ball Z Vol 1 – 26 [Manga]
  • Bakuman Vol 1 – 2 [Manga]
  • Hikaru no Go – The Neverending Road – Chapter 1-79 [Fanfiction]
  • Azumanga Daioh [Manga]
  • Street Fighter: The Ultimate Edition Book 2 [Comic]
  • Street Fighter: The Ultimate Edition Book 1 [Comic]
  • Get Backers [Manga]
  • L, Change the World [Short Novel]

This is obviously not a complete list of all the things I’ve read as I’ve got so many comics and random mangas in the list too. This is just from my accomplishments post.

I haven’t read that much this year…and that’s okay. Steve Jobs book this year…and we’ll see what else.

Gaming

  • Super Mario Kart 7 [3DS]
  • Kirby: Return to Dreamland [Wii]
  • Kirby Mass Attack [DS]
  • New Super Mario Bros [DS]
  • Super Mario 3D Land [3DS]
  • Star Fox 64 [3DS]
  • Catherine [PS3]
  • Zelda: Ocarina of Time [3DS]
  • Zelda: Ocarina of Time [N64]
  • Super Mario Bros. [Wii]
  • Hard Corps: Uprising [PS3]

Last year was pretty quiet but this year was…not. More on that here

Art
Is it still okay to say this is a hobby of mine? I don’t think I did a single art piece this year.

What I hope to accomplish this year

worldofwarren.com
I’m going to get rid of the Blogger theme I have. I guess that one’s never really been mine anyways….not that the GMAIL or Google+ themes are really mine either though >_< I want to make a professional theme still...I guess that would be next on my design plate. warrenshea.com
I’m going to finish this..and soon!

[sideproject].com
I still plan on making this. It’s not my epic project. It’s a blog that won’t be updated too often. It’s based on a product line of toys I really like. Anyways, I’ll get this made this year, for sure! Right after warrenshea.com! I’m kinda waiting on my new camera for this because I want to take photos of my toys FOR this site.

Blogging
I’m getting a bit tired of blogging to be honest. I think blogging once every 4 or 5 days is a good amount…maybe a bit too little though? That would only be like, 7 posts a month! I really like having 10-15 posts a month…anyways, we’ll see.

Reading, Gaming, Art
I don’t care so much about reading or art. As for gaming, I would still like to continue gaming…but maybe game less than this last year.

Improving development skills
I’m not going to set any really high ambitions for this this year. I learn best and most when I have a practical project to work on….so I guess I’ll really try to focus learning through working on my current site and projects, worldofwarren.com, warrenshea.com, [sideproject].com, and [epicsite?].com.

I guess what I learn will all depend on the projects I do. I’m try to focus less on learning, and more on working on practical work…and let the learning come naturally and automatically.

How I’ve changed professionally this last year

To be honest: At this point, I think I’m at my lowest point of motivation ever. Part of it happens to be my work friends. It seems like the new friends I’ve made at work really affect my productivity. Not surprising. All I want to do nowadays is chat. It’s been really bad (professionally). Personally it’s been really fun and great lol.

Part of it is being on these super really long projects. They’ve been delayed and delayed. I’m afraid to take on new projects that will end up going and then falling at the same time as these big projects, and physically and mentally stressing me like they did earlier this year. I hated it. All work, no play. And then I got sick. I don’t wanna go through that again. To be honest, I’ve been avoiding projects for what seems like a long time. I guess it’s only been since Sept/Oct though.

How I hope to change professionally this year

I need to get out of my rut. Should I volunteer for more work projects? Maybe new job might help. But I dunno. I guess I’ve been in this job/role for about 4 years. Maybe it’s time for a change? I just need some motivation…

…in two years…

I’ve done a lot since I quit WoW, two years ago today. I like where this is all going. I like the websites I’ve done. I like the friends I’ve gotten in touch with again and the new friends I’ve made this year. I like that I’ve watched a lot of new shows, listened to different music, played lots of games. Basically, I’m really happy with all the things I’ve done since I quit WoW. I can’t imagine doing 1/2 of these things had I still been playing.

Let’s see what this next year brings :)
BRING. IT.

Posted in All Posts, Blogging, Daily Randomness, Games, Introspection, My Life, Past, warrenshea.com, Web Developer, Work, World of Warcraft, worldofwarren.com, Writing | No Comments »

Gamer VS Developer

Friday, January 6th, 2012 at 1:05 am

As my “two years” since the day I quit WoW (World of Warcraft) comes up, I’m reminded of what I wanted to do this last year. And I honestly fall pretty short of what I wanted to do (more on that in Sat’s post).

I wanted to focus this year on development. But I didn’t. I didn’t learn most of the stuff I wanted to learn. And I think that I learned that I’m fundamentally more of a gamer than a developer. But maybe that’s only true when I’m not motivated to develop :P

In recent years, I played a lot of WoW. Then, I took a break from games and did worldofwarren.com (previously known as warrenshea.com). And then I went back to games this year.

Look at the 2 lists below, they speak for themselves (thank you bi-weekly Accomplishments posts for making this so easy to compile).

In this last year, these are the games I’ve played and beat completely (in order of most recently beat to least recently beat)

  • Super Mario Kart 7 [3DS]
  • Kirby: Return to Dreamland [Wii]
  • Kirby Mass Attack [DS]
  • New Super Mario Bros [DS]
  • Super Mario 3D Land [3DS]
  • Star Fox 64 [3DS]
  • Catherine [PS3]
  • Zelda: Ocarina of Time [3DS]
  • Zelda: Ocarina of Time [N64]
  • Super Mario Bros. [Wii]
  • Hard Corps: Uprising [PS3]

This doesn’t include the games I played but didn’t beat (cuz there’s no ending) – Marvel VS Capcom 3, Initial D: Extreme Stage, Gran Turismo 5, League of Legends (LoL), DOTA, DC Universe Online, Counter Strike: Source, Plants VS Zombies, and even occasional (but non-addicting) WoW….plus all the iPhone games: Cut the Rope, Cut the Rope: Experiments, Drop 7.

In this last year, this is what I’ve done development wise (from a personal perspective….I still did/learned a lot from work)

  • New Google+ Theme on worldofwarren.com
  • Got worldofwarren.com and moved content from warrenshea.com to worldofwarren.com
  • warrenshea.com (but not complete…80% done)
  • Heavily cleaned up code on worldofwarren.com
  • Fixed old themes on worldofwarren.com
  • Read CSS Mastery book

Honestly, while I did a lot of dev, I think I spent most of my time playing games (well, actually most of my time would go to watching and re-watching shows, sitcoms, anime but I do other stuff when I watch stuff…like eat/dev). I think the year after WoW was working hard on development to balance/catch-up the time I’d lost gaming due to WoW. And then this year was to catch up in the years I’ve missed in gaming :P I didn’t mean for this to happen…it just…did.

I don’t know what next year will be like: Dev or Games? I think professionally, it’d be better to focus on dev….but I can only do that if I’m motivated. Lately…I just haven’t been (this looks so bad to any potential employers coming to my site looking for a self-motivated individual). It’s hard because I’m not one to finish projects….starting warrenshea.com, finishing most but not completely finishing it. And then I don’t want to start a new project because I should really finish warrenshea.com. And then I don’t wanna finish warrenshea.com cuz it’s the boring stuff, clean up…nothing challenging. So then what do I do? Game. I guess it’s all about procrastinating….and gaming is my most fun, efficient use of time-wasting. I imagine I’ve spent a little more time gaming than blogging…but maybe not, it’s hard to say….I blog a lot but I don’t game a lot…just in concentrated spurts.

I guess my next most efficient time wasters would be reading: comics, manga, fanfiction, a novel here or there…followed by art/design.

Still, Web Development is not a time waster. It’s my professional field…and while many people don’t do professional stuff outside of work, I try to be an exception. Because I certainly do love development, and I think keeping a current skill is incredibly important for future opportunities. My skill with a blade must be sharp, like the blade itself. It can’t be dull, or it’ll take more hits to take out a Stalfos. OMG too much Zelda. But seriously…out of the other 14 developers in my department, only 2 develop frequently. And they’re both senior and incredibly skilled. Less than 5 do occasional development and the rest don’t do any outside of work. And that’s okay if they’re okay with that.

But I’m the least skilled of the 3 most skilled in our department….and the least hard-working of them. And yes, while I’m in the top 4/5 in terms of skill…I’m the bottom of the top. I don’t like that at all. I’m not saying I want to be the best if it sacrifices my life…but both of the people above me seem to have a pretty normal social life. More normal than me…

Anyways….I’ve really been reflecting on my “two years” post and this is something related, on my mind, but not what I want to focus on….which is why it’s a separate post.

Good night for now, talk to you soon :D

Posted in All Posts, Games, Introspection, My Life, Past, Web Developer, Work | No Comments »

New Years Resolutions

Thursday, January 5th, 2012 at 10:55 pm

I don’t usually follow New Years Resolutions. Infact, I think it’s somewhat absurd to put off doing something til New Years. If you want to exercise or quit smoking or (anything)…why not do it as soon as you feel the need/want?

Also, I never really follow through with New Years Resolutions, often simply forgetting them.

Regardless, there are some things I want to improve on…so I figured I might as well make them and try to strive for it.

Again, it’s not like I was like “okay, new year….time to shape up”….I’ve been trying to do these somewhat before and after New Years…just saying I know how hypocritical it is writing what I wrote above, and then making New Years Resolutions. The irony is not lost on me.

  1. Be healthier
    I want to be sick less often. Less stress related canker sores. Lose some weight. Gain some stamina. I used to have a fantastic immune system….I was very proud of it, but it seems in the last 2 years, it’s gone straight to hell. I need to build it back. Take less drugs, let the body fight stuff off on it’s own.
  2. Sleep better
    No more 5-6 hours of sleep on work days. I want 8, give or take an hour or so. I think this will help a lot to being healthier. Don’t sleep so late on weekends and wake up earlier on weekends. I don’t think my body can handle what I used to do between 2000-2010 (when I was 18-28). I think it’s time to stop sleeping like a young adult…sad to say, but it’s true. I need to act my age a bit more…(in this one particular thing) :D
  3. Keep gaming and keep developing
    Besides work, and social events….pretty much the only 2 things I do right now is game and develop. Art, Photography, Blogging on the side…but blogging is pretty regular so I won’t include that. Basically I don’t want to forget to develop. Like warrenshea.com’s 4-month hiatus….I shouldn’t be doing that.
  4. Spend less money
    Just be smarter with money. Go out to eat less (going with being healthier). Less impulse buying.

Damn, need to write an epic post on Jan 7….don’t really want to atm. Would rather play Zelda or Develop. I have a goal to finish warrenshea.com by 1/14/2012….for a somewhat obvious reason that I can’t write about (hint hint). Was supposed to develop tonight, but just played Zelda. 27 Hours of playtime atm….so fun tho :D

Posted in All Posts, Daily Randomness, My Life | No Comments »

WTB – January 2012 Edition

Monday, January 2nd, 2012 at 11:59 pm

What can I say, Dec was an expensive month. PART OF IT WAS THE CHRISTMAS DEALS and stuff. I didn’t even include some things in here in the post below…like I bought 2 Assassin’s Creed games…Assassin’s Creed for 14.99 and Assassin’s Creed Revelations for 19.99 (and I already got Assassin’s Creed II). I’m just missing Brotherhood. At under $20 for both, why not!? I also got some earrings for Z, those weren’t cheap (Tiffany’s…oooOOooo). I also got some cheap Street Fighter graphic novels…bah, too much to list. Anyways, Jan seems to be a lot better. With a lack of social events, plus not many items…I hope this money to average with December to be 2 average months. Here’s hoping!

Will blog more, I promise :D

Things I’m expecting in January – Total $83.38

Catherine
$83.38 – Price I Paid (total)
Pre-ordered Sept 7, 2011
Release Date Jan 2012
Purchased at HOBBY SEARCH

Things I received in December – Total $506.66

Razer Lachesis 5600 dpi Gaming Mouse
$54.99 – Price I Paid (total)
Ordered Dec 26, 2011
Received Dec 29, 2011
Purchased at FutureShop.ca
Dawson’s Creek: The Complete Series
$42.90 – Price I Paid (total)
Ordered Dec 20, 2011
Received Dec 21, 2011
Purchased at Amazon.ca
Zelda: Skyward Sword Collector’s Edition w/ Gold Remote
$151.63 – Price I Paid (total)
Ordered Dec 12, 2011
Received Dec 21, 2011
Purchased at eBay.ca
Shigenori Soejima Artworks
$26.33 – Price I Paid (total)
Ordered July 11, 2011
Received Dec 21, 2011
Purchased at Amazon.ca
Megaman Zero
$31.99 – Price I Paid (total)
Pre-ordered July 30, 2011
Release Date Oct 2011
Received Dec 21, 2011
Purchased at The Big Bad Toy Store
Kotobukiya DC Comics: Batgirl Black Bishoujo Statue
$51.99 – Price I Paid (total)
Pre-ordered July 7, 2011
Received Dec 21, 2011
Purchased at The Big Bad Toy Store
Batman Arkham City
$101.64 – Price I Paid (total)
Purchased Dec 5, 2011
Received Dec 7, 2011
Purchased at Amazon.ca
Mario Kart 7
$45.19 – Price I Paid (total)
Received Dec 4, 2011
Purchased at Best Buy

Posted in All Posts, New Stuff (monthly) | No Comments »

Accomplishments – January 2012 Edition

Sunday, January 1st, 2012 at 11:59 pm
What I accomplished in December

Shows / Movies
Contagion – Done
Another Earth – Done
50/50 – Done
Die Hard [Rewatched] – Done
The Godfather Part I – Done
The Godfather Part II – Done
Friends S2 – S10 – Done

Books & Manga
Dragon Ball Z Vol 1 – 26 – Done
Bakuman Vol 1 – 2 – Done

worldofwarren.com

warrenshea.com

Gaming
Super Mario Kart 7 [3DS] – 100% – Done

Web Development and Design

Other
Built 3 SD Gundam Models. Going to my friend’s boyfriend’s place (who’s a Gundam fan), reinvigorated me to build some models that had been collecting dust. Here are some pics I took of them on my iPhone…(see below)

Notes
Too busy socially this month. No more. So tired of going out. Got a small cold a few days after Christmas….and then went clubbing (This is London) on Dec 30, and then a House Party on Dec 31. While sick. ugh. 3 Brewers (a bar) on Dec 22. Went to that sausage house Dec 16. Went to a work holiday party on Dec 9, and then a bar afterwards. Went out for a friend’s birthday on Dec 10. Magic Wok and Go for Tea Dec 2. And 2 family dinners (Z’s and my own). 3 if you could today….which I won’t. Thanks goodness for Facebook Timeline (and Z checking in all the time), and Twitter to help me remember this last month. I should look at that every month, when I try to figure out what I did in the last month.

Seriously, out of the 14 days (of the Fri, Sat, and Suns of this month), I’ve been busy 9 of them. THAT’S TOO MUCH FOR ME. I need a break. I have no social events this month and I want to keep it that way. Maybe one. But that’s it >:(

What I want to accomplish in January

Shows / Movies
Glee S1-S3
Pushing Daisies
Misfits S1-S3
Dawson’s Creek? :P

Books & Manga
Steve Jobs

worldofwarren.com
My “…in two years…” post, a followup to …in one year… post.

warrenshea.com

Gaming
Zelda: Skyward Sword

Web Development and Design

Other

Notes
I hope to keep up with blogging….there’s a lot I want to write but I’m finding lately I just want to game when I have free time. Also, I’ve been in front of my computer less this month than last…



Posted in Accomplishments (monthly), All Posts | No Comments »

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