summercomfort (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
summercomfort) wrote2012-01-01 11:51 pm
summercomfort) wrote2012-01-01 11:51 pm
2011 in Review
Oh hey! I'm a bit overdue for my 2011 year in review! (Had some rather full days of late, what with taiko, rpg party, and meeting up with all sorts of friends)
Anyway, I totally forgot how I did this in previous years, and I think that's a good thing, since I can start afresh and not feel bound by the values and mental schema of Past Me. (Chances are that it's very similar, though.)
Experiences:
- First time traveling alone, and enjoying it! (Italy, Croatia)
- Finally making it to the Middle East (though Turkey barely counts) and Latin America
- The fun and energy of weekly Taiko drumming, and also finally getting good enough to do a public performance!
- Designing a visual "style" for Matriarchy!
Improving Skills (with some caveats):
- Learning the banjo (mostly in 1st half of the year, though): Although I got the banjo in November of 2010, I really only started practicing regularly this year. I got into a pretty good rhythm from January - April, but it sort of fell apart in the summer travels, which was then followed by the start of schools, and the holidays.
- Sewing skills ++ : ACen costumes this year was a challenge because in addition to making costumes for me and Jono, I also made a costume for Cat and wings for Alexis. This allowed me to work with new materials (for the wings), and since I didn't know Cat's size, I gained experience in making everything semi-adjustable. In making my Halloween costume I got to experiment with different textures and colors. I'm also really proud of the bag that I made. I can definitely see ways to improve it, but it looks pretty good for a first-bag. (Enough that it passes for a store-bought bag).
- Learned a bit of Javascript (not the server side): With help from Jono, I learned some Javascript, so now I have a much better idea of the possibilities available for manipulating a webpage from the client side. I have still to learn about the server side stuff, though.
- Got cold feet re: Jianghu game design: I worked on Jianghu a bit, but around August I at first thought it was getting close to making sense, but then 2 weeks later it felt like nothing was making sense and had serious doubts as to whether any of it would work at all. So I've put it aside for now -- I think that I need some time away, and then some time to step back and look at what I actually want the game to be about in terms of in-game experience and play experience. I've been kind of avoiding most of the theory stuff --- I think it's just served to confuse me.
Life and Relationships:
- Having really serious life conversations with Jono and figuring out future, careers, kids, etc, in a way that has made our commitment to each other stronger.
- Reaching a level of comfort and integration at school: I finally know enough people that students say hi to me across the campus, and I feel a real sense of connection with them -- I even care about their sports! I've also felt comfortable enough with some of my colleagues to invite them over to role-playing parties, and the reception seemed positive! It takes me a while to open up to adults, especially since I often feel like I'm wearing an "adult costume" when I'm at work. My school tends more towards "jock" than "nerd" anyway.
- Staying in touch with friends from different periods of my life. I feel like this year I have fewer regrets of not-keeping-up-with-friends. I seem to have figured out a way to meet up with my college and high school friends at least once a year. At ACen this year we got a giant 8-troll meetup just from our UCJAS alumni. The annual summer travel with Joanne, the annual winter karaoke with Alexis. I had a fun time with my high school friends on my birthday, and Kim visited! Plus the various Oakland Saturdays has kept me more connected with the folks up north.
- Getting to hang out more with Jono's family: I really enjoyed camping with Jono's family in August this year. It was much more relaxed than the holidays, and I felt like I got to know everyone a lot better, especially Aleksa. Plus mom taught me how to make a campfire!
Overall:
- I feel like I traveled just the right amount
- My social and personal relationships feel healthy and rich
- I feel like I'm improving my skills in a rather haphazard and disjointed way.
- Noted absences:
(1) nothing much to say about Chinese School: it remains in stasis for now.
(2) nothing much to say about the skill of teaching, which is alarming.
What I would really like is a nice solid chunk of time to improve my Modern World History curriculum. I would also really like a nice solid chunk of time to really think and deal with Chinese school stuff. These two seem to be rather at odds with each other, however.
Anyway, I totally forgot how I did this in previous years, and I think that's a good thing, since I can start afresh and not feel bound by the values and mental schema of Past Me. (Chances are that it's very similar, though.)
Experiences:
- First time traveling alone, and enjoying it! (Italy, Croatia)
- Finally making it to the Middle East (though Turkey barely counts) and Latin America
- The fun and energy of weekly Taiko drumming, and also finally getting good enough to do a public performance!
- Designing a visual "style" for Matriarchy!
Improving Skills (with some caveats):
- Learning the banjo (mostly in 1st half of the year, though): Although I got the banjo in November of 2010, I really only started practicing regularly this year. I got into a pretty good rhythm from January - April, but it sort of fell apart in the summer travels, which was then followed by the start of schools, and the holidays.
- Sewing skills ++ : ACen costumes this year was a challenge because in addition to making costumes for me and Jono, I also made a costume for Cat and wings for Alexis. This allowed me to work with new materials (for the wings), and since I didn't know Cat's size, I gained experience in making everything semi-adjustable. In making my Halloween costume I got to experiment with different textures and colors. I'm also really proud of the bag that I made. I can definitely see ways to improve it, but it looks pretty good for a first-bag. (Enough that it passes for a store-bought bag).
- Learned a bit of Javascript (not the server side): With help from Jono, I learned some Javascript, so now I have a much better idea of the possibilities available for manipulating a webpage from the client side. I have still to learn about the server side stuff, though.
- Got cold feet re: Jianghu game design: I worked on Jianghu a bit, but around August I at first thought it was getting close to making sense, but then 2 weeks later it felt like nothing was making sense and had serious doubts as to whether any of it would work at all. So I've put it aside for now -- I think that I need some time away, and then some time to step back and look at what I actually want the game to be about in terms of in-game experience and play experience. I've been kind of avoiding most of the theory stuff --- I think it's just served to confuse me.
Life and Relationships:
- Having really serious life conversations with Jono and figuring out future, careers, kids, etc, in a way that has made our commitment to each other stronger.
- Reaching a level of comfort and integration at school: I finally know enough people that students say hi to me across the campus, and I feel a real sense of connection with them -- I even care about their sports! I've also felt comfortable enough with some of my colleagues to invite them over to role-playing parties, and the reception seemed positive! It takes me a while to open up to adults, especially since I often feel like I'm wearing an "adult costume" when I'm at work. My school tends more towards "jock" than "nerd" anyway.
- Staying in touch with friends from different periods of my life. I feel like this year I have fewer regrets of not-keeping-up-with-friends. I seem to have figured out a way to meet up with my college and high school friends at least once a year. At ACen this year we got a giant 8-troll meetup just from our UCJAS alumni. The annual summer travel with Joanne, the annual winter karaoke with Alexis. I had a fun time with my high school friends on my birthday, and Kim visited! Plus the various Oakland Saturdays has kept me more connected with the folks up north.
- Getting to hang out more with Jono's family: I really enjoyed camping with Jono's family in August this year. It was much more relaxed than the holidays, and I felt like I got to know everyone a lot better, especially Aleksa. Plus mom taught me how to make a campfire!
Overall:
- I feel like I traveled just the right amount
- My social and personal relationships feel healthy and rich
- I feel like I'm improving my skills in a rather haphazard and disjointed way.
- Noted absences:
(1) nothing much to say about Chinese School: it remains in stasis for now.
(2) nothing much to say about the skill of teaching, which is alarming.
What I would really like is a nice solid chunk of time to improve my Modern World History curriculum. I would also really like a nice solid chunk of time to really think and deal with Chinese school stuff. These two seem to be rather at odds with each other, however.