This is a little bit off of the beaten path for me, but something brought it to the fore last week. I was playing an online game when I got into a bit of a "contest" with a rival player. The rival wrote a very eloquently virulent multi-post letter about how evil my actions were and consequently this player needed to resort to extreme actions in the game. Neither of us was entirely right in our in-game stances and actions, and I did bristle on the first reading. After rereading it, though, I became convinced of something much more important than in-game behavior, and that is that I was spending too much time with this game. Make no mistake- this game is right up my e-alley and is well-designed. The problem is that it is a 24/7 RTS (real time strategy game), and therein lies the rub- it CAN be a major time suck. And I do have an offline life.
So, I made an announcement in-game that I had languishing projects, and have drastically cut back my involvement. I don't know how much time I've reclaimed, but I do know I've resumed work on my database.
The thing I find interesting about balance is that while it is ultimately a positive in one's life creating and maintaining it is certainly work- and not the fun sort of work. I'm certain most everyone experiences some sort of work which they really enjoy... for me, that might be blogging or photography. For Jennifer, it's creating delicious meals in the kitchen. For Mr. T., it's digital modelling... I could go on, but you could probably give an example or two from your own life.
Balance, I think, requires planning, steadfastness and a certain dash of practicality. As I was wrapping up my last job of the day, I had a few options for what to do when I got home. I don't usually go right to bed, but wind down a bit on a PC. I thought about a bit of weight training, which I desperately need to get back in to, but our training area outside of the Secret Underground Lair (SUL) is still not ready for prime time. So, Plan B was implemented: catch up on the aforementioned game, and get a blog entry at least started. I'm also trying to do a bit every day with my database in the SUL- this had been a goal when I first started working on it, but as many things go... well, the plan sounded good on paper!
Today, though, I have a very concrete data entry goal: enter or update twenty-three records in the Media_Title table. Twenty-three? Yes- it's a strange number, but it's the number of slots I have open in a small CD rack, so that is my goal for the day. They are stacked up behind me on a folding table, gently whispering just below the whizzing of three computer fans, calling out with their data entry siren song....
Right. Data entry was, is, and will always be... WORK!
As always, I am hochspeyer, blogging data analysis and management so you don't have to.
Showing posts with label RTS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label RTS. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 22, 2014
Thursday, September 18, 2014
A conundrum
I had thought of using the plural of conundrum in the title of this, the 126th edition of A homegrown DBA exploring #notsobigdata, but I ran into a small problem: it seems that there is some disagreement as to exactly what the proper plural is. Not having a foundation in any language from whence this word may or may not have originated, I will defer to the OED's verdict: conundrums. And, for those of you who never knew a world without the internet, Google did not put a red squiggly line under the OED version, so it must be correct. Now, if only the Urban Dictionary (sorry, no link; I tried to keep this safe for viewing anywhere) would second this motion....
I suppose the thing that brought all of this up was a situation that happened at work recently. A few months back, my boss asked me to confirm or deny a certain habit of a coworker. This made me somewhat uncomfortable, and my boss was quite aware of it, but it was an important matter and he needed to get an answer specifically from me, as I was the only human being who could verify the matter (it probably could have been settled through the review of certain electronic records, but for some reason that avenue was not explored). I told my boss quite honestly that I could not confirm the allegation. Recently, however, I found myself in a position to revisit the question- hence, the curiosity of the plural of conundrum. My problem was this: I was quite uncomfortable when the topic was first broached, and I answered the questions honestly, all the while giving my colleague the benefit of the doubt. Recent events, however, put me in a position to conclusively verify what my boss had suspected, and so I found myself with no choice but to reopen the matter and confirm the allegation.
To say that things like this make me uncomfortable is an understatement. I can usually "fake it 'til you make it" in most social or business settings, but when it comes to coworkers and serious stuff, I'm an invertebrate.
In other news, I'm in the final "era"of my very favorite online game, Rail Nation. I say this also with mixed feelings, as this will probably be the last round I play for some time. Rail Nation is an RTS (real-time strategy) game, and has players from all over the world. I love the game- what's not to like: it's trains. Think the original Sid Meier's Railroad Tycoon- if you liked that game, chances are you'd love this one. But, as much as I love this game, I need to take a break from it, as it's a major time suck.
Continuing from my previous topic, there are two programming languages which were not on my laundry list of things to learn. I can't believe I omitted HTML5 and CSS3. I actually have a tiny bit of experience with HTML, having once had as one of my many job responsibilities the title of "website administrator" for a company that really didn't want to do business on the web. And these folks were all engineers!
No data news to report- this work situation has really unsettled me. And there's a reason for it, but I'm currently not at liberty to discuss it.
As always, I am hochspeyer, blogging data analysis and management so you don't have to.
I suppose the thing that brought all of this up was a situation that happened at work recently. A few months back, my boss asked me to confirm or deny a certain habit of a coworker. This made me somewhat uncomfortable, and my boss was quite aware of it, but it was an important matter and he needed to get an answer specifically from me, as I was the only human being who could verify the matter (it probably could have been settled through the review of certain electronic records, but for some reason that avenue was not explored). I told my boss quite honestly that I could not confirm the allegation. Recently, however, I found myself in a position to revisit the question- hence, the curiosity of the plural of conundrum. My problem was this: I was quite uncomfortable when the topic was first broached, and I answered the questions honestly, all the while giving my colleague the benefit of the doubt. Recent events, however, put me in a position to conclusively verify what my boss had suspected, and so I found myself with no choice but to reopen the matter and confirm the allegation.
To say that things like this make me uncomfortable is an understatement. I can usually "fake it 'til you make it" in most social or business settings, but when it comes to coworkers and serious stuff, I'm an invertebrate.
In other news, I'm in the final "era"of my very favorite online game, Rail Nation. I say this also with mixed feelings, as this will probably be the last round I play for some time. Rail Nation is an RTS (real-time strategy) game, and has players from all over the world. I love the game- what's not to like: it's trains. Think the original Sid Meier's Railroad Tycoon- if you liked that game, chances are you'd love this one. But, as much as I love this game, I need to take a break from it, as it's a major time suck.
Continuing from my previous topic, there are two programming languages which were not on my laundry list of things to learn. I can't believe I omitted HTML5 and CSS3. I actually have a tiny bit of experience with HTML, having once had as one of my many job responsibilities the title of "website administrator" for a company that really didn't want to do business on the web. And these folks were all engineers!
No data news to report- this work situation has really unsettled me. And there's a reason for it, but I'm currently not at liberty to discuss it.
As always, I am hochspeyer, blogging data analysis and management so you don't have to.
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