Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Winter
I suppose such is life, but one of the reasons I moved to Virginia was to experience winter. Thus far, I have to say I feel somewhat cheated, as most of Texas last night and today are experiencing snow/ice while the DC-MD-VA area continues to remain cool but not cold enough to cause snow. Even Waco is finally getting some daytime snow! I expect Virginia to make up for lost snow.
Friday, January 12, 2007
The New Year (and other ramblings)
The Road Ahead
A new year has commenced, and with it, a new Jonathan. Well, not exactly "new" per se, but I believe a lot of aspects of my life will continue to evolve and change as I become more settled in my new home here in the Washington, D.C.-area. Although I continue to work for a law firm, and plan to put in my time here, I remain committed to defining and pursuing what it is exactly I want to do career-wise.
As some of you know, I have spoken briefly recently about accepting my previous offer for enrollment at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA. The beginning of the semester would coincide with my one-year anniversary where I work, which was determined to be the minimum commitment to my current employer. However, as much as I love writing and enjoy the creativity and freedom of thought it provides, I have become more and more doubtful of the merits of a Master's degree in a skill rather than in education towards a particular profession or career. You see, although the Professional Writing program both improves my skills and produces legitimacy to those skills, I would still be forced to choose some type of career path within writing, which I have been careful to avoid. This caution remains.
With the new year already rolling, I have become steadily more interested in the intelligence field. My skills tend to be in the areas of analysis and cross-referencing, as well as writing in general. My knowledge base tends to be in the areas of political and international affairs, which would, I think, be helpful in that particular field. Currently, I'm studying the field to see if it would be appropriate for me. Certainly the pay doesn't seem to shabby!
Escapades in Film
Film continues to really interest me. Travis and I continue our work on the screenplay IJ, which we hope is destined for production by a reputable studio. Our plan is to have it completed in roughly a year. Something about visuallizing funny scenes is really fun, and I think if we can learn the necessary skills to produce a good screenplay and, perhaps more importantly, get it into the right hands, it'll be gold. We shall see.
A new year has commenced, and with it, a new Jonathan. Well, not exactly "new" per se, but I believe a lot of aspects of my life will continue to evolve and change as I become more settled in my new home here in the Washington, D.C.-area. Although I continue to work for a law firm, and plan to put in my time here, I remain committed to defining and pursuing what it is exactly I want to do career-wise.
As some of you know, I have spoken briefly recently about accepting my previous offer for enrollment at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, PA. The beginning of the semester would coincide with my one-year anniversary where I work, which was determined to be the minimum commitment to my current employer. However, as much as I love writing and enjoy the creativity and freedom of thought it provides, I have become more and more doubtful of the merits of a Master's degree in a skill rather than in education towards a particular profession or career. You see, although the Professional Writing program both improves my skills and produces legitimacy to those skills, I would still be forced to choose some type of career path within writing, which I have been careful to avoid. This caution remains.
With the new year already rolling, I have become steadily more interested in the intelligence field. My skills tend to be in the areas of analysis and cross-referencing, as well as writing in general. My knowledge base tends to be in the areas of political and international affairs, which would, I think, be helpful in that particular field. Currently, I'm studying the field to see if it would be appropriate for me. Certainly the pay doesn't seem to shabby!
Escapades in Film
Film continues to really interest me. Travis and I continue our work on the screenplay IJ, which we hope is destined for production by a reputable studio. Our plan is to have it completed in roughly a year. Something about visuallizing funny scenes is really fun, and I think if we can learn the necessary skills to produce a good screenplay and, perhaps more importantly, get it into the right hands, it'll be gold. We shall see.