HAPPY NEW YEAR!! I’ve finally gotten back from a long and much needed break and I’m ready to tackle this twenty-ten thing head-on.  I’ve set two resolutions for myself this year – one for fun, one for work.

Resolution #1:  Start skateboarding again.

Yes, I’m turning 37 this year and I somehow think it’s a good idea to jump onto a small wooden plank on wheels and launch myself into some concrete hole in the ground.  I was inspired by a film my brother insisted I watch called ‘Rising Son: The Legend of Christian Hosoi’ – IMDb Link – and from scene one I was back in 1988 tooling around New Hampshire pretending to be Tony Hawk.  My brother and I had loved skateboarding and were avid skaters from about age 12 to 18 and we’ve both occasionally gotten back on ‘the horse’ from time to time over the years, but I’m making a concerted effort this year to make it a larger part of my life again.   Why, you ask?  Simply put, because I miss it – it’s also a pretty good workout and exercise is something I could use a more of.

I’ve chosen a Stereo deck designed by Chris Miller as my ride into this closing-in-on-mid-life adventure.  My very first deck was a G&S Chris Miller ‘Faces’ model and my last real deck before my ‘retirement’ was a Schmitt Stix Miller model too, so it seemed logical and in the interest of good luck to stick to what worked in the past.

Wish me luck.

Ain't She a Bute!

Resolution #2: Finally learn Actionscript 3.0

Actionscript is the programming language that runs all Flash applications including website like the ones I build.  Most of the website I make have literally thousands of lines of code the tell the site what to do and when – it’s what allows Flash to be interactive and fun.  When I began this career AS2 was the current standard language but has since been replaced by AS3 – much to the chagrin of all the design-minded ‘programmers’ out there.  I’ve made a few pathetic attempts to learn and work with it over the past year but always found myself frustrated and abandoning it for the soft and comfortable embrace of AS2.  But in 2010 I am making it a rule to not program anything in AS2 and just jump head-first into AS3 and get it over with.  It’s the same language obviously, but the subtle (and not subtle at all) differences with how it is written are mind-boggling frustrating.

Of my two resolutions this year the one I feel most likely to kill me is this one.

Wish me luck!

The Nightmare that is AS3

Well, that’s it for now.  I hope everyone had a happy and safe holiday.

P.S. Oh and I’m moving into a real office next week – so that happened.  Pictures and info coming soon!!