Long Time No See

OK, so February went by with almost no writing from me. I had intended to come up with SOME sort of habit to get into in Feb, but it didn't really happen. Well, I do some calisthenics before my shower in the mornings, but that's about it.

March is different. I hope. I plan to, each week, learn and implement a new pattern, practice, application block or technology. I realize that doesn't apply to writing, but I have to prioritize. I'm sure I will settle into the blog space in time.

I also plan to keep up my c# blog better. As I discover new things, I will try to blog about them. I've already got 2 ideas ready to research. I may also create a LiveJournal or something so I can write private stuff from anywhere.

Can't Talk

I've written more than I can post. That's actually a good thing. If I write to get something out of my system, then I'm writing purely for myself. I don't feel like I have to share everything -- in fact, if I were to share everything, then I wouldn't be able to publish a secret novel eventually. :)

Last Night

I have succeeded in posting every night since I started. I will cease to write every night, but I do plan to keep it up. Had this been the first of February, I would not have made an entry because I have a splitting headache. I wanted to keep my word, so I wouldn't lost momentum before blogging became a habit. We'll see how well I keep it up. I also won't be posting so much stuff about writing, though I may suggest topics now and then. This will become a forum for short rants and editorials.

I'm going to go curl up with my cat and try to sleep off this headache.

Staring at the Backs of my Hands

Just now I was staring at the backs of my hands, trying to come up with an idea to write. While that's not very interesting, I could use that activity as a part of a story. I could include a description of my hands, the laptop over which they're hovering, or I could just write about someone who has writer's block. If you're stumped for an idea, consider what you're doing while being stumped. You might find being stumped is actually inspirational.

Stupid Commercials

I'm so tired of crappy commercials. It seems that more and more commercials are so lame that I don't even realize what they're selling or so awful that I'm turned off. I understand the idea that a slightly irritating commercial catches the attention of viewers, but come on! Give me a commercial that has some thought behind it. I'm more likely to buy a product if I know what it is. For example, what the heck is this HeadOn crap? The ads are irritating and make no claims about the purpose of the product. Show me a commercial like the Honda Civic ad and I'm mesmerized. I haven't purchased a Honda yet, but I would consider one. I would never buy HeadOn.

Teachers Suck?

We've all heard the saying, "Those who can - do. Those who can't - teach." Where does that saying come from? Pay.

I do technical screenings for the recruiters at my company, and I have screened out some terrible candidates. Even some of the decent candidates are lacking some basic software development skills. I am blown away by the things these graduates didn't learn. It's times like that when I feel that teaching would help bring more light into the the software development world. Pushing a handful of developers each year into the world with truly useful skills could give me a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction on a level is difficult to achieve developing software itself. Perhaps if I were to write software that saves lives I might have different feelings on the subject.

So why don't I teach then? I couldn't afford to have a teacher's salary and maintain my current lifestyle. Not only that, but I would have to go back to school to get at least a Master's degree. So not only would I make less -- I would have to pay for it.

Tools - Education

One great tool for writing is education. There are all sorts of writing classes from general creative writing to poetry to science fiction. Not only are writing classes useful, but other classes may help, too. History, science, literature, art, theatre, and more can help a writer hone his or her skills. There are stories to be told in all areas of study. Just because a class is called computer science, doesn't mean it's devoid of writing material!