November 2005 Archives
Two aren't enough... Rachelle got me another puppy! She's an 8 week old "dapple" colored Dachsund. Super playful, and only falls asleep in our arms. We don't have a name for her yet, so throw some ideas out there!
well, heres an updated picture of myself and Aruna from about 2 weeks ago when he took me out for dinner on my birthday. The reservations were for a train ride dinner through Napa Valley, and we had a good time. The meal itself was very good, but the only down side to this birthday dinner was that since my bday is in November, dinner would be in the dark ( its winter time ) so unfortunetly, we could not see much of the country side of Napa valley since this train ride was after 7:00 pm. Oh well..I would still highly recommend it but try to do it during the summer months when its still day light outside so you can see the beautiful vineyards from the train :)
Yesterday, after nearly 6 years of continuous employment, I ended my tenure at Rainbow Studios. I had a blast, made many friends that I will keep in contact with, and learned a great deal. It is the end of a huge chapter in my life, but as that one ends, another begins. I will soon be starting on the ground floor with the guys over at 2XL games, the latest start-up game studio in the valley. Founded by the guys that originally formed and built Rainbow (and the guys that sold it later for a cool $50 million), we will be breaking ground on next-generation games and building a new legacy through talent. I can't wait.
The miracle drug?
Daily, we stand in awe of man's ingenuity in mastering the elements and are enamored to the technology it develops—747s, cell phones, genetic engineering, Teflon, solar cells, titanium hips, etc. Furthermore, whenever we encounter a problem, we eagerly expect technology to instantly come to our rescue and, without fail, to work its miracles. However, the lure of seemingly clear technical solutions to our problems blinds us to the fact that frequently lurking within the "solutions" are the seeds of new problems. These germinate in quiet, only to eventually burst forth and blossom into a new crop of troubles that further exacerbate the original issue and force us to devote yet more attention and resources to resolving them.
To see one example of a technological "fix" and some of the unexpected problems it introduces, click Continue reading "Technological 'fixes'" immediately below (or simply scroll down if there is no link).
Lisa and I have been talking over the past several weeks about businesses, creating our own, and basically trying to figure out the best way to approach it. She attended a business workshop a couple of weeks ago, where the presenters went into great detail about the various type of business licenses, how much they cost, and what you can do with them. This information, coupled with my own research on the subject earlier in the year, will prove beneficial when we finally decide to start.
Like I wrote on my digitalgypsy vfx blog, several ideas of mine proved fruitless after I found similar, yet better products online. My next item that I'm currently developing will be for the food preparation industry; it is a kitchenware item that will prove useful when preparing food. There are a bunch of steps that I will have to go up in addition to the business creation side. These include finding a manufacturer, distributor, and reps to sell my product to the market. On this end, I think attending kitchen trade shows and the like will prove beneficial. There are quite a number of resources online which I've been frequenting over the past year. They include entrepreneur.com, efunda.com, the Uniform Code Council, and score.org.
Why am I doing this? I'm sure I've mentioned in the past, but I feel that being in the visual effects industry is not my final calling. I don't even know if I can take another 30 years of this? While I am having fun and enjoying the work, I don't necessarily feel fulfilled or challenged any more. Not to mention, trying to get a raise is like squeezing blood out of a stone, which is part of the problem. Being recognized for your work in with monetary reimbursement. At least with my own business I can take that as far as I want to, and the survival of that business resides within me, not with an employer.
I will keep you all informed of the steps we've taken and the changes we make for our future benefit.
