Despite the fact that I thought I gave a great interview, I got an email less than an hour later turning me down. When I asked, they said they were looking for someone “more senior”.
I’m going to have to change the name of this blog soon.
Wish Me Luck
I’ve got a phone interview today…my first in three months. Wish me luck!
Inaria iPhone Update 4: Musings on Inarian Architecture
Okay! One of the reasons I haven’t been posting regular updates about Inaria iPhone is because it’s been changing SO FAST. But this was just too good to pass up.
This update is being guest-written by my friend/graphics programmer/tester, Ryan Clark. I’d tried to solve two problems at once by putting the towns directly on the overworld instead of having separate maps for them. I thought I was Clever Dan…until Ryan got a hold of the new maps. Take it away, Ryan!
The Squeaky Wheel Gets the Chop
I recall reading in a book (it was probably Dale Carnegie’s How to Stop Worrying and Start Living) about a man who listed six things that he was afraid were going to happen, and that were absolutely killing him with worry. All six were terrible things, any one of which could ruin his life, and they were all affecting different parts of his life. Some were about his career, some were about his family, some were about his health. He wrote detailed descriptions of all six possible disasters on a piece of paper. Which he then promptly lost.
A year later, he was cleaning out his desk drawers when he came across that piece of paper. As he reread it, he noticed that not one of the six things had actually come to pass. He had spent all that worry for nothing.
Yesterday I went to see my cardiologist and my electrophysiologist. I discovered that since my last visit to them three months ago, I have had no tachycardia of any kind – not even mild ones. My pacemaker/defibrillator has had absolutely nothing to do.
Now, this isn’t a clean bill of health, but it’s probably as close to one as I’m going to get given my medical history. If I keep up my exercise and keep taking my medication, odds are very good that I’ll never have another tachycardia.
David is out of school now, which by itself is a relief (no more endless meetings about what we’re going to do about him, nor phone calls in the middle of the morning telling us to come get him). His behavior at home has improved, and we’re actually having a behavioral specialist come in and work with him here in our home – and he’s responding amazingly well to her. She’s even been able to do the one thing his teachers never could: get him to calm down when he starts going off the rails.
Of course, the job situation is still completely dire, but now I can at least focus more on finding a job and working on Inaria iPhone.
(Having said that, if you hear about a programming job – any programming job – in the Austin area, send it to me. No, don’t take it for yourself or give it to your friend of seventeen years. Send it to me. Me. Me, me, ME! Me, dammit, me!)
PSP Promise
During the 2004 run-up to the launch of the Playstation Portable, one of the promises made by Hirai & Co was that I would be able to carry around a playable copy of Final Fantasy VII at all times.
Now, five years later, that promise is finally kept.
So maybe now I’ll get one.
(Yes, I know, I could’ve already done it with homebrew, yadda yadda yadda.)
Game Coding Complete, Third Edition
After I mentioned Mike McShaffry’s Game Coding Complete in an earlier post, a lot of people were complaining that the only copies they could get were used ones for $100 or more.
Well, despair no longer! Not only is the book available again, it’s in a spiffy new edition. This time, Mr. Mike has collaborated with other programmer/writers on various subjects. It’s almost like an edition of Game Programming Gems, but it covers game engine creation from the ground up.
And Amazon currently has it for less than $40.
If only I weren’t completely broke…
Updates on Various Thingies
It’s odd, but talking about my problems has actually made them easier to deal with. I knew this at the time, which is why I did it 🙂
David’s about to be out of school. While he’ll be in my hair, he won’t be involuntarily hurting his teachers any more.
The job situation…well, still dire. I’m hoping that my iPhone project (which you can read about on my other blog) will bring in something…maybe pay the rent for a month or two?
The weight situation…well, I’m just going to keep walking five times a week and watching what I eat and what happens, happens. Maybe the next time I see my doctor he’ll have some suggestions. I actually feel pretty healthy; I’m just afraid that if I don’t get some more weight off I’ll end up with more heart problems.
So, things will get better. I’m sure of it.