It's Dai Time

Katie & Scott & Simon & Cecily.

Category: year26 (Page 2 of 92)

I posted an entry each day during my 26th year of life.

Day 361: google ad

February 7, 2010 / / 0 Comments

I was watching the Super Bowl today, not really rooting for one team in particular (although I have some allegiance to the Colts simply because they’re an AFC team).  And watching the commercials, of course.

I find some of them amusing (I just can’t get enough of that eTrade baby!), some of them dumb (how long can GoDaddy live on manufactured controversy?), when out of nowhere, a sublime Google ad appears.

Here it is, in case you didn’t watch the game:

It was the best advertisement I’ve seen in a long time, because it actually made me stop what I was doing and watch it with my full attention.  It featured the advertised product extensively throughout the commercial, it tells a story, and it hits us where we’re most vulnerable: by showing us that Google isn’t some nameless brand that we buy into because of superior absorbency or better handling.  It’s message is that Google is a part of the story of our lives.

And it does all of this with text and environmental music.  It’s one minute of absolute genius.  I don’t often feel like I’ve been blown away by something, but this really did a number on me.

Day 360: labor

February 6, 2010 / / 0 Comments

There are these videos that we watch in the prenatal classes that we go to, which are full of slimy newborns, milk-filled breasts, and the faces of women in labor. After a while, you kind of get used to most of it and I think it’s certainly acclimated me to what to expect (at least visually) when my son is born. When he comes out all icky and bloody and looking a bit like Benjamin Button, I won’t be shocked by it. The videos have helped that much.

It hasn’t completely calmed me in terms of labor, though. Sure, it has helped to identify the stages of labor, helped to define what transition means, and helped to set guidelines for when we should call or drive to the hospital. But every woman’s labor is so different and most women, as the actual delivery nears, get kind of crazy.

Not lunatic psychopath crazy, but they’re clearly dealing with a kind of pain that most have never experienced before and it takes them to another plane. It’s a little scary that Katie is going to go through that in about a month or so. Even after seeing the videos, I’m not completely sure what to expect from her.

And my biggest role once we arrive at the delivery room will be one of comfort and calming, but I’ve never been in that situation before. Will I be able to react quickly and correctly when Katie starts really feeling those contractions? Will I be able to stay focused and calm myself?

I don’t see how any class or video or thing (aside from having had a child already) could ever prepare you fully for the experience. I’m excited. And nervous. And a bit gassy, although that might be unrelated.

Day 359: what snowstorm?

February 5, 2010 / / 0 Comments

I remember when weather was something I experienced, and not just something I read about on the Internet.

It’s odd to see something like this

map_spectrop02_ltst_6nh_enus_600x405

and then walk outside into crisp 57 degree weather.

Most of my life, I’m used to living in regions that experience winter as a brutal force of nature, where freezing rain is a more-than-weekly occurrence and mornings mean having to dig your car out of the snow.

Nowadays, I live in the lap of meteorological luxury, where rain is considered an unkind weather event.  And in some ways, I miss Pittsburgh, with its cloudy skies and biting cold winters.  I miss the possibility of waking up to a foot of snow outside my windows.  I miss the thought of sipping hot chocolate as the world outside is blanketed by white.  It certainly made those few truly beautiful days each year seem extraordinary.

But at the same time, that’s a bit of a spoiled attitude, too.  While I didn’t move to the Bay Area for the weather, I might as well enjoy it.  I should take comfort in knowing that when we wake up tomorrow to go to our prenatal class, I won’t have to dig the ice scraper and shovel out of my trunk in order to even back the car out of the driveway.  I should enjoy the fact that I almost never have to worry about where to put my heavy coat when I get to work.  I should be thankful that taking out the trash is never a race to drag the containers to the curb before the air can chill me to the bone, a feeling that doesn’t leave your body for an hour.

So to all of you caught in this (as CNN calls it) epic snowstorm, I wish you luck and safety and much hot chocolate drinking.  I’ll be thinking of you from what almost seems like a completely different planet.

Day 358: happy birthday, sims

February 4, 2010 / / 0 Comments

Today, our studio celebrated the 10th anniversary of The Sims.

The first Sims game was released 10 years ago today.  Since then, there have been two sequels (one of which I had the honor of working on), with both the original game and Sims 2 having dozens of expansion and stuff pack.

But what a different world it was back then.  When the Sims first launched, Metacritic didn’t exist yet.  I had not yet graduated from high school.  I had not yet dreamed of ever working in the video games industry.  I was fairly certain at the time that I’d probably be a computer scientist for all of my life.

I was instead updating a personal website that used frames, the marquee tag, a listbot subscription field, a guestbook, a visit counter, and had such stellar content as:

I’m back again. And I’m rip roaring ready for another fun-filled year of school. This time, it’s even more special, because (gasp!), I’m a…junior! So, I’m going back to the rat race, the drawing board, the cheese factory, the pit, the blue hallway, whatever you want. I’m going back. That means I get to see all my loyal friends (and loyal enemies). Yeah! A little bonus for you all…I now have a picture of me!

Unfortunately, that picture of me is lost forever in the Internet.  Even I don’t remember whatever unfortunate hairstyle or expression I may have been wearing at the time.  It probably looked a little something like this:

sound board hijinks

Anyway, the point is, the pedigree of the games that I’ve been working on for the past three years is long and grand.  I’m proud to continue the work of all those who have come before me, to make games that are about creativity, storytelling, and the lives of ordinary people.  I’m honored to be part of a decade-long commitment to making games that can be fun without ever requiring you to shoot anyone in the face.

Also, the celebration at work today meant I got free cake.  So, that’s a big plus, too.

« Older posts Newer posts »

© 2024 It's Dai Time

Theme by Anders Noren — Up ↑