The Next Step

Behold the splendour of Calabogie Peaks!
This is not only the general location of where I'll be working,
but the very building where I'll be plugging away. 

I am The Warden!!

Anyone who's been a regular reader or occasional peaker may know it's been a while since my life was normal. A good career with a stable income and the ability to life a healthy life were both out of my reach for a time. It's been an uphill struggle, but it all comes to an end today. 

This morning, I was offered the Graphic Designer/Social Media Specialist position for the Calabogie Peaks Resort and Conference Centre, a year-round outdoor heaven for skiiiers, golfers, hikers, and more. It isn't something I've mentioned on this blog before because I intentionally kept it to myself. When I discovered the want ad for this baby, I knew it had to be mine. Not only would I be able to use my newly enhanced graphic design skills before graduating, I'd get to tweet/post/blog for a living. Gee, doesn't that suck? <end sarcasm>

There's still paperwork to review and I'm not scheduled to start until the 14th (the previous two days will find me in Hamilton for some unwanted, yet required, follow-up tests), but this job is in the bag. And the best part? The true reason why I got this job? 

Killshot. 

Graphic Designers vs. Graphic Technicians

I am The Warden!!

During my recent job hunting, I've been looking at two fields: retail management and graphic design. The first is more out of experience (I used to be a retail manager for close to eight years) and availability, but it's the second one that truly has my interest and attention. Graduated and trained as a graphic technician back in 2007, I started a 1-year online graphic design course back in June to update my skills with the latest versions of Adobe as well as pick up a few extra tricks to make myself all the more awesome. (Hey, this is job hunting. Confidence is right up there with wearing nice pants.)

Run back over that sentence again. I'm already a graphic technician and am now taking a course in graphic design. So what's the difference? I'm glad you asked because it's come up quite a bit over the past couple of years and I wanted to take the time to address it.

Building A Dragon

I am The Warden!!

(Apologies in advance for the excessive blank space and image placement in today's post. For some reason, none of the pictures will align left or right, so everything has to go in the centre.)

It's the sixth week of Illustrator class and that means final exam! In the three program-heavy, shortcut-learning courses provided in my Graphic Designer program, the sixth week is the last one set aside for a final practical assignment kept secret until the student successfully completes the previous five weeks.

For my Photoshop assignment, it was the hybrid blending of two real world animals. Remember the owlbear?

My Photoshop final assignment - an owlbear on its way to a forbidden castle,
thinking about all the adventurers its gonna eat. 

(Come to think of it, I'm not entirely sure if I've ever shared this on the blog. If you're not following me on Twitter or anything else, this is my final exam for Photoshop class. An owlbear, merged together from falcons - they have better beaks for a creature this size - and a grizzly bear.)

Enter the Caves of Chaos, Kids

I am The Warden!!

The Practical assignment for Week 5 of my Illustrator class was an 11"x17" poster for a real or fictional event and it just so happens I've been meaning to design a poster for my upcoming D&D games at the local library. After a few modifications to suit the demands of the assignment and the detail I needed to get across for new players...

BEHOLD!!

Some Things Change, Others Remain the Same

I am the Warden!!

It's time for me to explain recent events to everyone. Over the past few weeks (and over the last couple of years, to be honest), I've been hinting at significant personal issues that have bogged down my work yet never got into details. I think it's time to reveal what that was all about.

Four months ago, my income replacement benefit was cancelled by my insurance company as well as the retraining plan submitted to the same company intended to help me return to full-time employment. After two years of being unable to return to a gainful life due to physical and cognitive issues, I was dumped and left to fend for myself. I began the search for a new means to support myself and my family.

Simultaneously, my fiancee (who suffers from epilepsy) has been vigorously trying to return to school herself, an effort equally complicated by our dire financial situation. Ironically, she had more options to work with than myself because of our province's student loans program. (I'm ineligible for these programs because I'm currently unable to pay for my previous student loans.) For the last few months, she's been searching for an online diploma program that would allow her to return to a normal life without her condition interfering with her efforts.

Today, we both received some outstanding news. Then one of us had our news trashed by bureaucracy.