Books?

So apparently there exists people who are proud of the fact that they don't read. I have difficulty understanding something like this because so much of human culture is tied up in our literature.

There are people who hear the words "Big Brother" and think of a crappy television show rather than George Orwell's 1984 ^AMZN. Reading exercises our imaginations, a well written story can steal entire days from our lives and be even more emotionally stirring than mere television. Particularly the type of television programmes that I've been seeing lately. Sure, CSI can have engrossing stories and moving characters, but there isn't nearly as much room for imagination in a medium like T.V.

A good book can trigger my imagination so strongly that I find myself feeling that I know the characters. I can identify so strongly with each protagonist that I find myself imagining completely tangent story lines within the realm of the tale. I've never felt that connection with television. Possibly because the screen acts as a barrier; there's that fourth wall separating me from the story. I can accept the show for what it is, but I can't get as emotionally invested in the production.

It's aliiiiiive!

I'll probably write a bit more tomorrow. Today I received a gentle reminder that I like to do this. So this is what I'll do.

Lindsay and I went for a walk today, it was nice. Now that my gout has subsided to negligible levels I can walk without any serious pain. I've started walking to work. It's good exercise, but not a lot of it. I've noticed that my belly is getting a bit larger than I would like, so hopefully walking regularly will help reduce that issue. I've never been a super active guy... Sure I went for bike rides when I was a kid, but mostly I've been pretty sedentary. I'm likely paying a bit for that now. I should start doing daily exercise again. Yup. I should.

What I should do, however, is not always what I do do. Boo.

I can't see my keyboard very well right now... It's dark outside. And a bit cold.

I complain a lot. even when I don't have much to complain about.

Tomorrow I will attempt to get my High School transcripts.

Thinking about the future.

Some University pamphlets have started arriving in the mail. The First two are from Capilano University in North Vancouver, and The University Of New Bruswick in St John. Capilano sent me a fairly generic viewbook with a small program guide tucked into the back. U.N.B. sent a small library in comparison, the program guide focuses on the faculty of arts as I requested, and from St. John gets equal real estate as the view book. Also included from the Eastern campus was a third document dedicated to planning my finances when going to school, that will be quite handy wherever I decide to go.

My initial impression of Capilano, based purely on their paper pervasiveness, is that they are more proud of their location than they are of their school. I know that this is probably completely the wrong impression, I am sure that they are a fine institution. The location is beautiful though. Holy crap it's nice looking. Lakes, mountains, proximity to ocean, rivers and woodland;
View Larger Map

Lonsdale Quay Farmers Market is less than 10 minutes away. That's some damn good reason to seriously consider if not attending school there, at least living near there.

I'm by no means an 'outdoorsman' but I do really enjoy nature. Going for walks with my ladyfriend is a particular joy. I also like to go camping on occasion, so proximity to some pretty natural scenery is an extreme asset.

N.B has its charms as well. But I'll write about them later.

Okay! Writin' stuff

I have a notebook in my pocket. Ostensibly this is so that if I have a sudden inspiration to write, or some random idea jumps in to my head and I must tell the world about it, I have a place to take notes. I can jot down a bit of an outline so that the thought or idea doesn't get lost in the monotony of the rest of my day. This would work really well if, however, I also carried a pen. I'll have to work on that. “Working on it” seems to be the theme of this new hobby/habit/life that I'm trying to develop. Writing is hard, and I waver. I would waver more if it were easier though. I would get bored. I would think that it's pointless. I would make all sorts of wrong-headed assumptions that trivialize the pursuit.

This post wasn't planned, as you will likely be able to surmise.

So I'm glad that writing is hard. It challenges me and forces me to think. It makes me try to touch type. I'd forgotten about touch typing until just now. I usually focus on the keyboard when I type, now I'm looking at the screen. The process is much slower than I'm used to, I have to think about where each of the letter on the keyboard are. It's kind of neat though, with practice I can imagine myself sitting down at the computer and simply watching the words appear on the screen. My thoughts would flow through my fingers without any conscious effort.

Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

it took me about 20 seconds to go through the alphabet just then, touch typing. You care, trust me.

Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz

~10 seconds while looking at the keys.

I remember in grade eight or nine in “Computer Science” class, we were required to study touch typing. Back then I thought it was pretty pointless, I could see the letters on the keyboard, why shouldn't I use that resource. Gosh! But now I think about it, perhaps the teacher was right. If I learn this skill, I will not only have a new marketable talent, I will be faster and more efficient with my time. Rather than read things twice – once when I type it, and once to make sure that I typed it correctly – I will need only to read once, and see the mistakes as they arise!

Nothing so verbose today.

I've started reading a book that my Mother/Sister gave me for a gift-giving-occasion at some time in the past called "Seven Steps on the Writer's Path: The journey from Frustration to Fulfillment" by Nancy Pickard and Lynn Lott [AMZN] It's really freaking good! I should have read it when I first received it. I'm trying to take the lessons in this book to heart, I don't have any evidence that it will work, but a lot of what they are saying (at least in the chapters that I've read so far...) makes sense.
I've been unhappy for a while now in several aspects of my life, and I'm starting to accept that unhappiness and that is feeding my want to correct it. I have something I want to write, and I'm doing research now so that what I write will be accurate. I'm also reading more technical writing, and thinking about what techniques I can see that writers are using to communicate complex technical ideas to people who aren't necessarily technically inclined. I've been writing short articles for my workplace that describe our procedures, and documenting the assorted hints and tricks that we use in the Bench Technician field.

I'm also going to finally finish taking my CompTia Certification. I know enough to get it I think, and I damn well need to stop procrastinating and being afraid of change.

Afraid of change....
Damn, I need to write more. I didn't expect those words to come out this time.

I wrote this yesterday...

I'm sitting in my basement behind my drumset, My snare drum is acting as a desk, and my throne, an office chair. It's a pretty good start I'd say, because I'm finally writing. I've always wanted to write, but I guess I've never really sat down and done it. That was a foolish mistake on my part. I know that I'm creative, I know that I can - on occasion - be eloquent. I have a good vocabulary and passable knowledge of grammar. I enjoy text. Not just the reading of text, but the shape of letters, the process of transforming these little squiggles into cogent thoughts. Why in heck haven't I been serious about this in the past?
I'm twenty-eight years old. By the time my father was twenty eight, I was born and my sister was possibly on her way. My parents became adults long before I will, and that's not a bad thing. I think I'm kind of jealous. I know that Mom and Dad worked their assess off for Jessie and I, and I'll be forever grateful for that. I've heard that this has been a trend for a while now, that children stay with their parents longer. Thinking about where I am now, I'm not so sure that this is an entirely positive circumstance. As much as I'm grateful for the fairly privileged life I've had, I can't help but think about what I'd be like if I had to "grow up" sooner. What would my life be like if I'd had a kid before I was ready for one. What if I never got the job at LP. So many "what ifs" that I can't help but ask myself.
I don't dwell on "what ifs" though. It's not particularly useful. I may not always be the most motivated or active person, but when I do act, I don't like to waste any effort.

I'm going to return to school. I've wanted to get into technical writing for a very long time now, and I've wasted a lot of that time in not writing. Pretty foolish thing for someone who fancies themselves a "writer" I'd say! I'm pretty sure that I have no idea the extent of the challenge that I'm undertaking, but I know that the goal is something that I want. I'm getting pretty sick of wasting my time in not doing what I enjoy.
And I do enjoy writing, I'm having a great time even right now as I consider which word or phrase I am going to type next. Or when I realize that I've misspelled something like "realize". Or that by going back and adding "or phrase" the sentence will become more clear, more realistic, and overall, a better sentence. Writing is fun for me. I think that the big reason that I don't write more often is that I'm kind of self conscious about it. I can have difficulty deciding precisely what I want to write