The Monkey's Treefort

[Freehold DM]

Damn. I'm sorry Patrick.

[Mothman]

Shit man, sorry to hear. Hang in there.

[Ragadolf]

I am sorry to hear that.
Prayers for you and your furry friend Pat.

[Celestial Healer]

Sorry to hear that, Patrick :(

[captain yesterday]

Damn, that sucks!!!

There's nothing closer to our heart, then the pet that shares our home.

[Aberzombie]

Patrick Curtin wrote:

The vet thinks it is possibly cancer. He's having a lot of difficulty breathing and I guess he's even worse than when I left. I have to get back home. I can't deal with this I'm about to lose it

Sorry to hear this, brother. Positive waves to y'all.

[Sharoth]

~LAUGHTER~ How Doctor Strange should have ended.

[Drejk]

Icky is gone...

*sad*

Rather heartbreaking thing to read for a start of a new day.

*hugs Patrick*

[John Napier 698]

I'm sorry to hear that, Patrick. I realize that what follows will be inappropriate given the circumstances, but this is just bad timing, and I just got finished.

As many of you already know, I work for an Anime convention in Pittsburgh. Rather than posting links to the cool AMVs that I find on Youtube in several different threads, I created my own thread in Gamer Life / Music-Audio to act as a public repository for everyone to enjoy. I also take requests. Post an anime and/or a song/artist, and I'll try to find something. You can also post the links for your own favorites, but I ask that you keep things PG-13. After all, children may be watching. Thank You all.

[Patrick Curtin]

Drejk wrote:

Icky is gone...

*sad*

Rather heartbreaking thing to read for a start of a new day.

*hugs Patrick*

Thanks Drejk. It's been a tough evening. I'm still in shock.

[John Napier 698]

I'm sorry for your loss, Patrick. I was about ten when my dog had to be put to sleep. It wasn't cancer, but simple old age. But I know the pain that you feel right now. I know that it doesn't seem like it right now, but this pain will pass. ;_;

[Tacticslion]

I'm sorry, Patrick. That's a painful, painful thing.

[Drejk]

And I missed my mother's birthday. I was supposed to call her yesterday but my sense of calendar got even vaguer than usual.

Even when it occurred to me that it's already 1st day of February after midnight, my mind didn't computed that Feb 1 comes after Jan 31...

[Drejk]

Getting up early messes me more than getting up late...

[Drejk]

Or, I could blame Nobody for Serpent Skull campaign!

[Storyteller Shadow]

Patrick Curtin wrote:

Drejk wrote:

Icky is gone...

*sad*

Rather heartbreaking thing to read for a start of a new day.

*hugs Patrick*

Thanks Drejk. It's been a tough evening. I'm still in shock.

Uh, that sucks. Really sorry Patrick. My condolences.

[Treppa]

Noelle will be busy keeping the boys in line now (making all of them happy, I'm sure). Pay extra attention to your remaining boy; he'll miss Icky, too. Condolences and peace, Patrick.

[Treppa]

Finally feeling a bit better today. No fever last night, so I have a little energy today and am digging out from the piles of dirty plates, trash, and dirty clothes that have piled up amazingly this week. Able to sit up and work at the computer for 15 minutes at a time before collapsing for a nap, so that's progress. Off to the doctor now.

[Rysky]

*offers hugs to Treppa and Patrick*

[Storyteller Shadow]

Treppa wrote:

Finally feeling a bit better today. No fever last night, so I have a little energy today and am digging out from the piles of dirty plates, trash, and dirty clothes that have piled up amazingly this week. Able to sit up and work at the computer for 15 minutes at a time before collapsing for a nap, so that's progress. Off to the doctor now.

That is pretty much how I felt. It'll get better soon. :-)

[Ragadolf]

So sorry Pat.

Glad your feeling netter Treppa. :)

It's been a rough week for sure. Prayers and positive thoughts to all.

[Patrick Curtin]

Thanks everyone who had a kind word for me either on FB or here.

It's never easy, but it just illustrates how nothing in life is guaranteed. I had expected another 7-8 years with Icky. He wasn't a young dog, but he wasn't old either. I'm glad we had the time we did together and although I would have liked to spoil him with a nice yard and doggie daycare when I got settled in my new career, I can at least be happy we did a lot of fun hiking over the last two years.

Well, time to unknot my PbPs

*blink*

[Patrick Curtin]

Has anyone heard from Aranna lately?

[Patrick Curtin]

Yawn. Nighty night

[Aberzombie]

GOOD MORNING, MY FRIEND! COFFEE? I WAS JUST ABOUT TO MAKE A THIRD CUP!!!

[Patrick Curtin]

Too late. Already asleep :P

[John Napier 698]

Patrick Curtin wrote:

Has anyone heard from Aranna lately?

Not since around Jan. 10th. I hope she's okay.

[David M Mallon]

Is it just me, or have the forums been unusually quiet for the last couple weeks?

[captain yesterday]

Perhaps you've been hiding the political threads, like I just did today.

I've been sticking it to a wicked head cold myself. It's gonna wish it didn't infect me! One of these days. Hopefully.

[Freehold DM]

Have not seen Aranna.

[Storyteller Shadow]

David M Mallon wrote:

Is it just me, or have the forums been unusually quiet for the last couple weeks?

Yep political threads are certainly active, I have lost some time there but I need to shift my focus back to PbP! Plus now I have some table top prep to do. On top of that work has been crazy lately.

[David M Mallon]

captain yesterday wrote:

Perhaps you've been hiding the political threads, like I just did today.

I've been sticking it to a wicked head cold myself. It's gonna wish it didn't infect me! One of these days. Hopefully.

Basically the only threads that I don't have hidden or focused out are this one, a couple of music threads, the Wayfinder contributor threads, and the Mass Effect and Suicide Squad PbPs (and discussion threads).

[Treppa]

David M Mallon wrote:

Is it just me, or have the forums been unusually quiet for the last couple weeks?

They have. I expected an uptick after the holidays, but there wasn't much.

[Feros]

Treppa wrote:

David M Mallon wrote:

Is it just me, or have the forums been unusually quiet for the last couple weeks?

They have. I expected an uptick after the holidays, but there wasn't much.

It's quiet...

>.>

<.<

...too quiet.

[Ragadolf]

Work has been keeping ME busy for certain, and having Bronchitis did not help. ;P

[Treppa]

Yeah, I've lost a week to this damned bug. I had plans, so many plans!

[Storyteller Shadow]

Treppa wrote:

Yeah, I've lost a week to this damned bug. I had plans, so many plans!

Yep spraining an ankle followed up by an upper respiratory infection essentially put me back a week at work and months at the gym. 2017 is off to a great start for me.

[Aberzombie]

David M Mallon wrote:

Is it just me, or have the forums been unusually quiet for the last couple weeks?

Yes. They were quiet. Beginning a few days ago they were less quiet. Still, I'd say more quiet than usual....

You ask me, it's probably somehow the fault of the Cosmo guy. I've heard he's kind of shifty.

[John Napier 698]

I wonder how long we have to wait before we ask a moderator to shoot arrana an email as a type of welfare check, to find out if everything is okay? It has been nearly a month since her last post, and I worry about my friends.

[David M Mallon]

Employment-related question:

So... I need to find a new field, at least as far as my "day job" is concerned. I'm staring down the barrel of my fourth decade, and after spending the better part of my teenage years doing sports (including, but not limited to: hockey, shot put, discus, and weightlifting), and the better part of my twenties in warehouses and on construction sites, my back and knees are shot to shit. Combined with a few other chronic health problems that have been plaguing me my whole life, all of that means my days in the blue-collar world are numbered.

Given that I have severe social anxiety, and as a result, extremely poor interpersonal skills, the only real options I have left are in the tech field. Problem is, I know next to nothing about technology. Growing up, we didn't even have a computer in the house until I was a teenager, and I wasn't allowed to use it, which puts me way behind everyone else in my age bracket (and a lot of other people both older and younger than I am). I can manage files, run programs, and enter data, but I don't actually have any of the skills to work with programming or electronics, which are vital if you want to get a job in that field.

I know a lot of you are huge nerds have experience in the technology field, whether as a career or as a hobby, so you might be able to help on this one: how would I go about gaining the skills required for some kind of behind-the-scenes IT job, and if I gained the skills, how could I catch up to everyone else on the job market?

[Sharoth]

David, call me and we can talk about what I know about the tech field. Did you need my number?

[John Napier 698]

David M Mallon wrote:

** spoiler omitted **

Programming isn't as hard as most people think. Sure, some math is involved. But you can get by with basic Algebra. The more you know, the more you can do. If you want to build web pages for clients, I'd recommend HTML 5, CSS ( Cascading Style Sheets ), and either Java or C#.

Get the compilers for Java or C#, and the books. Go through the books and do all the exercises. For HTML, you can run them from a text file in your preferred Web Browser. By the way, learning from the books that I bought was how I learned C, C++, Assembly Language, and Windows Programming. PM me if you have any further questions.

[David M Mallon]

Sharoth wrote:

David, call me and we can talk about what I know about the tech field. Did you need my number?

Spoiler:

Has your number changed?

I'd been meaning to talk to you about this, by the way--I've always had a lot of phone-related anxiety, but for some reason, over the past couple years, it's gotten a lot worse. Hence why I never pick up the phone unless it's family, my doctor, my case worker, or someone calling about a job interview.

Any chance we could talk over e-mail?

[Aberzombie]

David M Mallon wrote:

** spoiler omitted **

My own recommendation, if you're serious about a tech field job, is maybe look into drafting/design work. If I recall correctly, you've done lots of construction work. A little delving into computer drafting (for civil engineering type jobs) might be just the thing for you.

[David M Mallon]

John Napier 698 wrote:

David M Mallon wrote:

** spoiler omitted **

Programming isn't as hard as most people think. Sure, some math is involved. But you can get by with basic Algebra. The more you know, the more you can do. If you want to build web pages for clients, I'd recommend HTML 5, CSS ( Cascading Style Sheets ), and either Java or C#.

Get the compilers for Java or C#, and the books. Go through the books and do all the exercises. For HTML, you can run them from a text file in your preferred Web Browser. By the way, learning from the books that I bought was how I learned C, C++, Assembly Language, and Windows Programming. PM me if you have any further questions.

Honestly, I've always been decent at math. My biggest problem is total lack of context.

[Sharoth]

David M Mallon wrote:

Sharoth wrote:

David, call me and we can talk about what I know about the tech field. Did you need my number?

** spoiler omitted **

Sure. I will text you my e-mail addy.

[David M Mallon]

Sharoth wrote:

David M Mallon wrote:

Sharoth wrote:

David, call me and we can talk about what I know about the tech field. Did you need my number?

** spoiler omitted **

Sure. I will text you my e-mail addy.

Thanks man

[John Napier 698]

Aberzombie wrote:

David M Mallon wrote:

** spoiler omitted **

My own recommendation, if you're serious about a tech field job, is maybe look into drafting/design work. If I recall correctly, you've done lots of construction work. A little delving into computer drafting (for civil engineering type jobs) might be just the thing for you.

I also did well in my Drafting and Mechanical Drawing classes in High School. If I wasn't more interested in programming, I'd be doing that, instead.

[John Napier 698]

David M Mallon wrote:

John Napier 698 wrote:

David M Mallon wrote:

** spoiler omitted **

Programming isn't as hard as most people think. Sure, some math is involved. But you can get by with basic Algebra. The more you know, the more you can do. If you want to build web pages for clients, I'd recommend HTML 5, CSS ( Cascading Style Sheets ), and either Java or C#.

Get the compilers for Java or C#, and the books. Go through the books and do all the exercises. For HTML, you can run them from a text file in your preferred Web Browser. By the way, learning from the books that I bought was how I learned C, C++, Assembly Language, and Windows Programming. PM me if you have any further questions.

Honestly, I've always been decent at math. My biggest problem is total lack of context.

Start small. Think of several small projects, perhaps inspired by the books, and move on to larger projects. Begin with the basics, then gradually add functionality. This was how I wrote my Anime Database program. I drew pictures in a notebook how each screen should look, then I added each piece of functionality one at a time.

[Drejk]

While riding today with a friend (with a new used fridge on the back of the car) we spend most of the half hour ride talking about healthy food... We are really getting old...

Friend is speaking how he is trying to convince a lot of use for a healthier eating: My motivation is purely egoist!
Me: Yeah, you want to have some company when you get really old.