Blogocentric Formulations

Life Is Good Again

Last night, I finally got my laptop back from the manufacturer via Best Buy. Thankfully, it was still under manufacturer's warranty, because it had a defective video chip. And since it was a cheaper laptop with an integrated video card, they had to completely change out the motherboard. If it hadn't been fully covered by the warranty, I would have been looking at either a few hundred dollars in repairs (the laptop was only $500), or a completely new machine. Mercifully, they were able to repair it and I got it back with the hard drive intact. No need to reinstall my programs, no need to recover the data backup I made before dropping it off. Life is good again.

I also managed to get my entry in for the "What a Character! : Official WDC Contest"  contest... it's the first time in months I've gotten an entry in on time for the official monthly contest (especially if you don't count the fiction story I submitted for the nonfiction round! ). I had to put a bit of a rush on it and ended up submitting it with about 25 seconds to spare... but hey, it still counts. I really liked my character and the concept; not sure if I pulled it off as well as I had hoped. You be the judge:

The Futurist  (ASR) What A Character! Contest Entry - July 2010 #1695161 by Jeff

On Friday, my wife and I head back to Northern California for her high school reunion. We grew up in neighboring suburban neighborhoods of Sacramento, and she went to one of my rival high schools... so it should be interesting.

Other than that, not much is new. I'm trying to take my writing a little more seriously. I have a bad habit of considering it a hobby... not really making any concentrated efforts to get published or sell something as much as writing for fun and without much purpose other than my own edification. Not that there's anything wrong with writing for yourself... but at some point, I do want to be published, and I do want to make money (and hopefully have a career) based on my writing. So no more procrastination and no more excuses... it's time to take some positive steps toward making my writing career a reality. Now.