Family / Work

I had a great weekend.  My Mom visited so I spent it with her.  Gave her the Bioware tour, went to nice restaurants, saw Transformers 2 and UP.  Spent a lot of time with Bill and Tia.  It was great seeing her again; I hadn’t seen her since Christmas.  She was happy for me and my new life.

We went to the Muttart Conservatory, and then spent the afternoon on Whyte Ave.  We visited the Chapters and I bought a book that I’ve heard is very useful in the QA Design field, The Hero With A Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell.  An amazing read so far, all about how there is an age old story structure pattern that appears in all myths and fictions of our past and even in current movies, games and books.  This “monomyth” shows up everywhere because it is our internal story, the common narrative which guides us from birth, through adolescence and finally to death.  This internal story finds its way into all our stories.  Very cool stuff, and I can see how it’s so useful to QA Design.

Yesterday was my Mom’s last day in Edmonton.  Sad to see her go again.  I’m going to try to visit Winnipeg in October.  Either I’ll have 3 months I need to take off between terms, or I’ll be full time with 3 weeks paid vacation and can afford it.  We’ll see.

On that topic, over the past few months I’ve been looking for QA Design work I could volunteer for to prove myself, but unfortunately it’s very hard to find that kind of work at this stage because most Design work has been completed for some time.  I can’t get in to specifics, but I took some initiative and pulled a bit of a power-play that really paid off.  All the right people seem to be impressed, and that can’t be a bad thing.  So now I’m doing some QA Design work, and I love it.  I’ve already received some great feedback.  I really feel like this is something I’m good at and could make a career out of.

And that may be sooner than I expected.  A QA Design Analyst position at Bioware was just posted.  I spent hours working on a new resume, custom made for this position.  I had it proof read by several people, and took their input.  In the end it went through 4 iterations.  It looks really professional.  The only official way to apply is online, but I also printed a copy and booked a small meeting with the Quality Assurance Lead at Bioware and personally handed him my resume so he knew I was serious about it.  And now he can put a face to the name.  Couldn’t hurt.  He seemed to appreciate it. 

This one is a bit of a long shot, I admit, but I’m trying my hardest to get it.  But even if I don’t, it looks good for the next time a position opens up.  By then I’ll have QA Design experience from this new assignment I volunteered for, and hopefully some references from that team.  And they’ll see I’ve applied before and am clearly determined on getting the position and increasing my knowledge in the area. 

But I am still secretly hoping, despite the odds, that I get the position first time around.  That would be just swell.

Another Cake Day!

Today is Cake Day!  For the last 2 hours of work we all head to the lunch room and eat cake and mingle, aka play Soul Calibur 4.  My Mom got in town yesterday.  Went for supper with her and caught up, it was good.  Today she’s spending the day at Ikea and then I’m picking her up and giving her a tour of Bioware during Cake Day.  She’s gunna think we don’t do any work here, lol.

On the subject of work, it’s old news that I’ve decided I want to take the QA Design path, and I’ve started doing research to make myself as knowledgeable as possible on the subject.  There are several books I’ve had recommended to me, including the classic The Hero’s Journey by Joseph Campbell, which I will be picking up soon.  I’ve also been reading QA Design related articles on Gamasutra.  It’s such an interesting field I’m looking forward to exposing myself to it.  Done right, videogames could be the future of story-telling.

Mass Effect On iPhone

Go get it, it’s really fun!  Already available on app store with a 4/5 star rating!  I got to test it a few weeks ago, and it’s cool!

=D

Lately I’ve been getting really anxious about getting a fulltime position with Bioware.  I know it’s somewhat unlikely due to the economy and hiring freeze, but at the same time I’ve been getting a good feeling from my boss, and been hearing a few good things about my chances.  But at the end of the day it could go either way.  And I have so much riding on this.  I don’t have much of a life in Winnipeg anymore, but the only reason I moved to Edmonton was for this job.  I’ve made a great life here now, and want to keep it.  And I probably won’t know anything about a full-time position until the last minute, in October.

It’s really stressing me out some nights, when the reality of what’s at stake hits me.  If this doesn’t pan out, I can either get a crap job for 3 months until I can return to Bioware for another year and try my hand again at fulltime in a better economic climate and hopefully no hiring freeze, or I can apply at studios in Vancouver or Montreal, or even the U.S.  But I’d so much rather stay at Bioware, a company I LOVE being a part of.

Anyway, that aside, we had a meeting today and I got to see some really cool company secrets.  Also got to hear about the guys at Penny Arcade who got a full build of the game and what they thought of it.  Good stuff.

At 5:00 today there’s a company picnic I’m looking forward to.  It goes until 8:00 at which point I’m picking up my Mom who’s visiting me for the weekend!  It’ll be great, I haven’t seen her since Christmas, and I’m really excited to give her the Bioware tour and show her where I’ve been working and what I’ve become so passionate about.  So I’ll be hanging out with her all weekend. 

Also, next month my good friend Andi will be in town.  Also haven’t seen her since Xmas, and she’s since moved to Vancouver.  Now we’re 2 people who left their hometown to chase dreams and evolve, and I’m really looking forward to hanging out with her again.

Also, been getting in to Soul Calibur 4 lately with the guys at work.  Every break we head down to the lunch room and play winner goes on.  Good times.  I bought the game, and after a bit of training I’m a force to be reckoned with.  Though lately Reid has my number.  But I’ll figure his moves out and put him where he belongs :P

iPhone OS 3.0!

Now with MMS!

Soundtrack To Life

 

In honor of my recent entry, and of my one year anniversary since my roadtrip, which set in motion events that would eventually lead me out here, I’ve decided to upload the very long, very awesome playlist I made for the long drive out.  I’ve updated it a bit, but these were the songs I was listening to while driving from Winnipeg to start a new life in Edmonton.  I was excited and scared at the same time so I needed some music as a soundtrack.  So here’s over 2 hours of great “life” songs.  If you find yourself currently at a similar type of crossroads, I strongly suggest hitting play on the playlist on the right, and get reflectin’!

Hittin’ the Road

1. Snow Patrol – Chocolate
2. Fort Minor – Where’d You Go?
3. Eddie Vedder – Hard Sun
4. John Mayer – Free Fallin’
5. Mika – Happy Ending
6. Sigur Ros – Hoppipolla

Alone With My Thoughts

7. Bon Iver – Big Red Machine
8. Switchfoot – 24
9. Collective Soul – Crown
10. Sia – Breathe Me
11. Moby – Everloving
12. The Rosenbergs – Overboard
13. Live – Overcome
14. Johnny Cash – Hurt
15. Nine Inch Nails – Right Where It Belongs
16. Bon Iver – Blindsided
17. Porcupine Tree – Heart Attack In A Layby
18. Devin Townsend Project - Terminal
19. Matthew Good Band – Running For Home
20. Nine Inch Nails – Lights In The Sky
21. Oasis – Stop Crying Your Heart Out

A New Beginning

22. Aimee Mann – Wise Up
23. Porcupine Tree – Collapse The Light Into Earth
24. Mika – Any Other World
25. Dredg – Matroshka (The Ornament)
26. Stars – In Our Bedroom After The War
27. Annie Lennox – Into The West
28. Vast - You

Far Beyond Metal

Listening to that Devin Townsend Project has started to get me back into Metal.  And I stumbled across a great metal band, Amorphis.

Gotta love the cheese.