I have not posted anything in over a year basically because I have been working on other projects. Here is a quick year in review: We got a dog (Belly), I got a contract job with Starbucks in Carson City, Kevin quit his job at UNR, my contract ended, we moved from Reno to Denver over Thanksgiving '07, we got jobs in Denver, spent the next 4 months looking for a house to buy, we bought a duplex with Scott and Jessica, Kevin quit his job in Denver to work on the house, we have renovated the house, we moved into the house, and we continue to work on the house.

Besides working on the house I go to work as an Instructional Designer at eCollege, a division of Pearson Education. Kevin, Scott, Jessica, and I officially are in business together with Playinghere.com. The site is over a year old and though we are not making much money we have lots of users and lots of band moderation to do!

I am going to try not to abandon sidewalktheory.com again but the Denver summer awaits! My broken arm is healing and the biking trails, camping, and summer picnics are calling!

Finally far enough along in the house to post some pictures.  We've actually moved in so everything is a mess again.  Hopefully I'll find the time to post some of the finished pictures soon.

As anyone who follows what I'm doing should have noticed, I've all but stopped blogging. I've found it's pretty common for blogging to get dropped from the list of priorities after students get a job, but I think it's actually a little more basic than that. I think many people blog because they are looking to get a better job. I still write lengthy rants, but now I tend to do it within groups I'm active in like Drupal or in emails to people I'm working with at GenGreen and Playing Here. I spent the most time blogging before I was promoted to the Director of Instructional Technology for the College of Communication and Fine Arts at Bradley.

My brother Scott used to blog actively on Typewiring, but he hasn't updated his blog since Sep 29, 2007.

Other formerly active blogging friends and former students...
Brian McMurray - May 24th, 2007
Dave Look - July 31st, 2007
Dave Knape - November 5th, 2006.

People I know that have started or continue to blog... and possibly why?
Matt DeLio - Looking for a post doc
Travid Alber - Launching a start-up
Chad Udel - Moving up at Iona?
Ryan Jerz - ???

As you may have noticed Kevin added the live music in Reno links at the bottom of the nav bar. This info is being pulled from Scott's (Kevin's brother) site Playinghere.com. The site is a cool resource that allows you to see local music venues -- mostly scrapped from MySpace.com. See the About Section for more info.

DESIGNING
Another fun tidbit about this site is I helped Scott with the design. We went through several design iterations. Since this project had no real time constraints and Scott was not sure what he wanted in terms of design, I started with the logo.

Kevin and I are going to our 4th SXSW Interactive Festival together! Technically, it is Kevin's 5th SXSW but who is counting? This year should be especially interesting since Dan Rather is the keynote. I am hoping to hear some realistic remarks about how emerging technology is shaping the news. We shall see. I hoping to have lots to report after next week.

As usual Kevin and I are going to use this opportunity to network and build relationships with other techies. Kevin has gone so far as to help rally a meet-up with the Austin Drupal Group.

This year I am looking for more permanent work since Thomson NETg has been sold.  To help me with my networking I am taking my business card with a mini resume on the back.

Kevin and I had a pretty good year. We have been married for over a year now, lived in two cities, and moved from a townhouse in Morton, IL to an apartment in downtown Reno, NV. We have transitioned jobs, downsized from two cars to one, and six months after our move we find ourselves in another transition period. We are two weeks into the New Year and Kevin and I are eager to figure out what is going to happen in the coming months.

Kevin’s contract is up in June and the company I am working for, Thomson NETg, has been acquired by Skillsoft. You can read more about it here. I have been applying for jobs all over the US but mainly in Chicago and Reno. Next week I am flying out to Chicago for a few days to explore some career opportunities. Kevin will find out in March if his contract will be renewed but with passing of Cole Campbell, the dean of the Reynolds School of Journalism, the school’s funding future may be uncertain.

I enjoy working from home and producing e-learning courses, but I am excited to have a job that will lead to more challenging and steady work. Hopefully in the next few months I can update this post with some solid news about our career futures.