Sitting by the fire and watching it burn

And so it starts. The back-to-school pit in the stomach. More like a weight, if you ask me. But yeah - I'm at the two-and-a-half week mark to being back at school. Bleh, not looking to it forwards to it too much. Well, truth be told, I got in phases. "Yeah, I think this year will be alright." I won't be working on the side, so I should have time to make things happen. And "I'm not so sure about this... Can I do it?" Five studio courses. FIVE. Thirty hours of classes a week. Last year, a design studio had about 5-10hrs of homework for each class. And I won't be working. How am I going to get by? So many variables and IF equations, so few solutions or formulas. I was offered a peer tutoring position, which I kinda want to accept. It'll make me feel useful. But do I have time? How will I manage? Ugh.
/anxieties

My last week, entertainment-wise, has gone a bit like this. Play/finish Starcraft II (aliens vs marines), play a round of Alien Swarm (aliens vs marines), watch Aliens II (aliens vs marines and Sigourney Weaver). Lots of aliens and marines within a 72hr period. I don't really have a point to this, I just thought it was an interesting coincidence - something I hadn't planned at all.

So... Starcraft II... I'm simultaneously satisfied and let down. Good story, that's for sure. Great universe and plot events with intriguing characters. Cool visuals and art direction, solid gameplay. On the other hand, it's the same solid gameplay I've seen ten years ago with the first Starcraft. It's VERY similar. The script/dialogue is kinda... Weak. There's no finesse or subtlety - everything feels very deliberate and obvious so that the play knows what's going on. As for the climax and end of Wings of Liberty... I feel that some parts weren't quite fleshed out and I'm feeling a bit unsatisfied. But I want to know MORE. WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? Overall, I got lots of mixed feelings. As someone who's primarily in it for the single player campaign, I feel safe in saying that $60 doesn't quite feel appropriate for the experience. It's a good game, but not THAT good. Something is lacking. I suppose the multiplayer is supposed to be the big draw, but that ain't quite up my ally.

My laptop is acting kinda weird. When I boot it up, even before it hits Windows, I get a quick blue screen. Then it takes me to a screen where I can choose to analyze the issue or go straight to Windows. I analyze, and get absolutely nothing of use. It mentions that I should disconnect and new hardware I've added. Which is nothing. I wonder if it has anything to do with the hackintoshing. The only thing I can think of is that I had to enable hardware virtualization in the BIOS in order to install OSX. Bleh. I just don't know. I can't really bring myself to figure it out. I'm just so fatigued. I'm thinking I should maybe use the $900 I saved by not getting a Mac, and find a cheap-o used Macbook Pro in the classifieds that I can use for a semester or two before selling it. I just don't got a lot of fight left in me these days.



I finished up my ABC's. There might be a half-dozen letters I'm not quite happy with, but as a whole I think I produced some good stuff. If nothing else, it totally gave me enough fuel for drawing, period. It's amazing, after I finished the alphabet set, drawing became such a chore. I have such a tough time deciding on what to draw. But I did, eventually, finish my 100 sketches. Not that you can tell by looking at my Flickr feed - I have a bit of a backlog to upload. I need to stop being so lazy.

But, to my credit, I've had a productive couple weeks at work. I got through a big project on my own, that I anticipated would take much longer even with the help of some coworkers. But it's all done. And I bought some shoes and jeans yesterday too. Did I mention I hate shopping? Le sigh.

I'm done Starcraft II, and I'm not going to draw anymore past the 100 sketches, unless I feel particularly inclined. I think I'm entering the 'totally petrified of losing my mind' phase, and I'm pulling back a bit where I can. Two and a half weeks before it all goes to hell anyways. Why bother? Anyways, hopefully I can get some other odds figured out before the end of the summer. Need to figure out my laptop and parking, among other things. Upload the rest of the sketches. Play with the new camera. Play some music, write some more, go for a run, laser the laptop.

The time. She ticks.
-Cril

You break a few bones, you break a few nails
It's like you set me down when you set your sails
You send a few letters but they're never enough
It gets rough, every time you leave me alone

I don't do so good on my own
I need a telescope, not a telephone
Stray cat strutting through a snowy backyard
It gets hard, every time you pick up and go

Joel Plaskett - Every Time You Leave