Goodbye Fidelity, Hello School, oh and Podcast Me!
So... Things got busy. No, not just busy: hectic.
The two biggest pieces of news:
1) I resigned from Fidelity!!! - And I can say the name without getting fired for it, now! :D (That's actually an oversimplification, but it's also not far from the truth of the internet policy for licensed representatives.) I'm FREE of investments and economics and facing death & retirement day in, day out. Most importantly, I'm OUT of an industry that is as far removed from creativity and valuing said creativity. It was a drain on my mind and soul, more than I ever communicated, despite the fact that Fidelity is an excellent and amazing company to work for. They're also great for investing, which I can also finally say. :) If you call, you'll have a pretty good chance of finding someone who's eager to truly help you. (Unless they're supposed to go home or take a break in 5 minutes. lol)
2) I'm going back to school!!! - This is the reason I left Fidelity. I stopped going to school when I couldn't figure out what I wanted to do anymore. -Also, working full time, studying for incredibly difficult licensing exams, and going to school did not work out for me at all.- Because I royally screwed up my GPA by simply not attending the classes without dropping them because I didn't want my parents to know I'd lost all drive, I have to go back to the community college for one semester, but even if I didn't have to, I would have made the choice anyway.
I've chosen to go to UTD for my degree, but by going back to the community college for a semester, I get to lock in those rates for my tuition: in short, I'll save thousands of dollars this way. I'm actually pretty happy about it, even though I loathe the community college: it reminds me of failure. As an all-A student who coasted from kindergarten through my first two years of college, you have to understand how crippling a 2.1 GPA is to me.
The degree I've chosen is a little off from what I really wanted -an English major- BUT it covers exactly what I need it to, and UTD is coincidentally the only university in Texas which has the program. It's called Emerging Media and Communications or EMAC and basically, it focuses on communication in the digital age. Programmers, developers, artists, writers, filmographers - pretty much any sort of creative person who's interested in using the internet to attain their goals are the students this degree is aimed at. Three semesters of "Research Writing" are required, AND I can get my minor in Creative Writing. I'm pretty psyched. The degree plan isn't as English/Writing-centered as I'd like it to be, but considering how many sites I'm writing for now (2, technically 3 but let's not mention the 3rd yet) plus all my experience prior, I'm not too concerned about that.
What do I plan to do with it? It's a pretty open field after I get it. I'll be forever striving to get into the gaming industry, whether the literal industry or websites about gaming like I do now, but we'll see. My goal is to get somewhere, with some company and write something, anything internet based. I found while at Fidelity that having writing skills plus some photo/video-editing and web design skills made me a very valuable person. I'm also trying to learn code through Code Academy (it's also included in the degree a bit) to make me stick out even more. :)
That's about it for Real Life changes, though. I'm optimistic. - And speaking of optimism, obviously I'm following the Xbox One and PS4 news closely: I think I'm one of the few people on the planet not freaking out. Last week was CRAZY busy for me, getting all that stuff above figured out and some other necessities, but I did manage to write an article today about the DRM panic. Y'all know me and my need to break everything down into an objective, logical viewpoint from which we can draw calm, rational conclusions: if you're concerned about the DRM issues, not to pimp myself out, but the article really may help - Next Gen DRM: Push Pause For a Moment.
The other awesome thing I got to do regarding the Xbox One was Destiny Dispatch's first ever podcast! It came out pretty well, if admittedly awkward for the first 2 minutes of introductions. ;) If you're curious, you can check out last week's here: Destiny Dispatch Podcast Episode 1. - We're recording our second one tomorrow! :D
The two biggest pieces of news:
1) I resigned from Fidelity!!! - And I can say the name without getting fired for it, now! :D (That's actually an oversimplification, but it's also not far from the truth of the internet policy for licensed representatives.) I'm FREE of investments and economics and facing death & retirement day in, day out. Most importantly, I'm OUT of an industry that is as far removed from creativity and valuing said creativity. It was a drain on my mind and soul, more than I ever communicated, despite the fact that Fidelity is an excellent and amazing company to work for. They're also great for investing, which I can also finally say. :) If you call, you'll have a pretty good chance of finding someone who's eager to truly help you. (Unless they're supposed to go home or take a break in 5 minutes. lol)
2) I'm going back to school!!! - This is the reason I left Fidelity. I stopped going to school when I couldn't figure out what I wanted to do anymore. -Also, working full time, studying for incredibly difficult licensing exams, and going to school did not work out for me at all.- Because I royally screwed up my GPA by simply not attending the classes without dropping them because I didn't want my parents to know I'd lost all drive, I have to go back to the community college for one semester, but even if I didn't have to, I would have made the choice anyway.
I've chosen to go to UTD for my degree, but by going back to the community college for a semester, I get to lock in those rates for my tuition: in short, I'll save thousands of dollars this way. I'm actually pretty happy about it, even though I loathe the community college: it reminds me of failure. As an all-A student who coasted from kindergarten through my first two years of college, you have to understand how crippling a 2.1 GPA is to me.
The degree I've chosen is a little off from what I really wanted -an English major- BUT it covers exactly what I need it to, and UTD is coincidentally the only university in Texas which has the program. It's called Emerging Media and Communications or EMAC and basically, it focuses on communication in the digital age. Programmers, developers, artists, writers, filmographers - pretty much any sort of creative person who's interested in using the internet to attain their goals are the students this degree is aimed at. Three semesters of "Research Writing" are required, AND I can get my minor in Creative Writing. I'm pretty psyched. The degree plan isn't as English/Writing-centered as I'd like it to be, but considering how many sites I'm writing for now (2, technically 3 but let's not mention the 3rd yet) plus all my experience prior, I'm not too concerned about that.
What do I plan to do with it? It's a pretty open field after I get it. I'll be forever striving to get into the gaming industry, whether the literal industry or websites about gaming like I do now, but we'll see. My goal is to get somewhere, with some company and write something, anything internet based. I found while at Fidelity that having writing skills plus some photo/video-editing and web design skills made me a very valuable person. I'm also trying to learn code through Code Academy (it's also included in the degree a bit) to make me stick out even more. :)
That's about it for Real Life changes, though. I'm optimistic. - And speaking of optimism, obviously I'm following the Xbox One and PS4 news closely: I think I'm one of the few people on the planet not freaking out. Last week was CRAZY busy for me, getting all that stuff above figured out and some other necessities, but I did manage to write an article today about the DRM panic. Y'all know me and my need to break everything down into an objective, logical viewpoint from which we can draw calm, rational conclusions: if you're concerned about the DRM issues, not to pimp myself out, but the article really may help - Next Gen DRM: Push Pause For a Moment.
The other awesome thing I got to do regarding the Xbox One was Destiny Dispatch's first ever podcast! It came out pretty well, if admittedly awkward for the first 2 minutes of introductions. ;) If you're curious, you can check out last week's here: Destiny Dispatch Podcast Episode 1. - We're recording our second one tomorrow! :D