Got an email out of the blue last night about BooGame. It was a simple question of "can I do this", but it also got me excited about working on the project again. Like writing, I always work better when someone is going "ooh, how pretty!" Call it vanity, but I write for audiences. It doesn't matter if it is programming, literary, or research reports.

(Side note, I'm going to use the official Weight Watchers weigh-in on Tuesdays to update the progress bar on the top. It is there to annoy me and remind me that I have something hanging over my head.)

I got distracted in the last few months from BooGame and the rest of my projects. Plus, just a general blah when it came to writing which I highly suspect was writer's block. I did write stuff, mostly commissions, but there is a strange thing in that I can write on demand very well, but I can't always come up with my own ideas. With commissions, I get the idea in paragraph form, so the "hard" part is already done. All I have to do is make beautiful words.

Though, while I'm experiencing writer's block, I have to schedule my writing instead of relying on the obsessive need to pound words into the keyboard all hours of the day. I miss that, when it happens, but I have 12d6 worth of Obsessive powers.

Speaking of commissions, I got a really nice compliment from my latest commission. You know, the usual "you do fantastic work" and "I don't think other authors could treat this topic so well". Yes, it isn't entirely true I'm that awesome, but still. It helps my ego swell by three sizes for reading them. It is like not getting a rejection letter from a publisher. True, only one person is probably going to read it. Well, the hordes of anonymous people once I sanitize the names, but it was written for a single person who loved it because they got exactly what they wanted. Knowing that I'm writing what they want, even though the topic is not my own, makes me feel proud. I can write well without having a strong emotional attachment to it.

That's passing now. My commission "season" is pretty much over at this point and my creativity is coming back because my life isn't as chaotic. Given that, I think I'm going to focus on BooGame for a little bit. Knowing someone is interested will drive me to finish and maybe I can get another chunk done before life hits me in the head again.

I've had a very busy weekend. I got my new drives (two 1.5 TB), cables, and memory sticks. I upgraded a bunch of machines, got my MythTV back-end working, but not the front-end. I also split out my Windows and my Linux machines into two separate machines which involved reading a 54 digit number over the phone three times to get it reactivated. But, it should make life a bit more stable when it comes to do school and business work. Not to mention it gave me room on the Linux machine to put in the second 1.5 TB drive as my new /home partition. Mmm, space.

I also worked on the new theme for Moonfire Games website. It is bright and cheerful, with more white than the old one, but I think it is also easier on the eyes to read. Well, except the font which needs to be seriously looked at again. This is also a pure XML/XSL stylesheet. If it works out, then I can make a generic "theme" for the site and use client-side XSL to format it; might make life easier.

Remarkably, I also manage to exercise every day except for Saturday. MiL took us on a "short" walk of 30 minutes. Damn that lady walks fast, but it also means I have a lot to go before I can catch up. I'm trying to get at least 4 activity points (another Weight Watchers thing) a day and then move it to 5 and maybe 6 at some point. We'll see if I'm making a small step toward weight loss tomorrow. Here's hoping.