Once again, it has taken a ridiculously long time for me to write another post. Could it be that I feel like I am not accomplishing anything? Maybe. More likely is that I feel like everything is in progress and not ready for release.

I have managed to finish something, though. The graduate school application is finally done and the admissions committee is currently reviewing that. I have no idea when I will hear back. People keep telling me that I will certainly get in, but my current view is to wait and see. If I do not get in for the fall term, I will take a class or two anyway and reapply after I have shown that I have potential.

I know. Not all that exciting and nothing you can really tap your toe to, but it is still an accomplishment.

Well, I think that I shall sit down at the piano for the first time in over a month. It has been that long since the bench has been cleared of math books, but I shifted them the other day in the hopes that I would start practicing and writing again. I have been listening to what is finished of Winter Colors on my iPod the past couple of weeks and I can feel inspiration close at hand.

Tschuess.

Hello once again, dear reader.

I know it has been ages since I last posted. Since you are apparently still checking, I will bring you up to speed on what has happened the past three months.

Act I. Less than a week until Christmas. My boss calls me (and everyone else) in. Sales have been quite bad. The company is going into “hibernation mode.” I am laid off. Effective immediately. There is a tiny severance package, but nothing that really reflects the decade I spent at a particularly boring job that was not putting my skills and talents to good use. I am freaked out, but I know that it is just the kick I need to find a job that suits me better.

Act II. Job hunting. There are some jobs around that are a good fit. I apply. There are other jobs that I wish were a good fit, but that means having a PhD. I start talking about finally returning to school to earn a doctorate (this time, in Mathematics) after dropping out of a Computer Science PhD program (ABD) ten years ago. Stress levels are high at home. Interviews are taking forever to set up. In late January/early February, I finally interview at a couple of places.

Act III. Mid-February. Colorado State University offers me a job developing disease spread modeling software (NAADSM). After some agonizing, I decide that it is where I should be. I can bike to work, take classes, and work on something that I believe is making the world a better place. In general, I can get back to my core values.

Epilogue. Tomorrow I start my new job. It has been an anxiety-filled few months, but now I can relax and get back to productive work. I can also wrap up my admissions essay, contact my references, and re-take the GRE (What?! The one I rocked 15 years ago is no longer valid?) in the next week.

In the meantime, I have been directing some of my stress energy into writing new songs. None of them are completed yet, but they are definitely moving forward. I am not certain what sort of project these will be released under, but I do think that they are going to be released sometime. I have decided that I must finish up and release my currently pending projects before I begin school in August. That is roughly what my release schedule looked like anyway, but now it feels like even more of a must. Hopefully having a real deadline will push me more than wishful thinking has the past couple of years.

Tschuess.

Halloween is nearly here, and I have not finished any super-spooky music. I have been putting together a seasonal music mix, though. Originally this was a two disc monstrosity, but after listening to it for a few days it dawned on me that it needed to pruned and a few new tracks needed inclusion. I have included links to places you can listen to or legally acquire tracks, as best I can. So here, without further adieu is my Halloween 2008 mix.

1. Herrmann by Arling & Cameron
2. Creepy Doll by Jonathan Coulton
3. Death Ship by Hoodoo Gurus
4. Transylvanian Concubine [The Manson Mix] by Rasputina
5. Basement by Skinny Puppy
6. Afterlifestyles by Graveyard Cafe
7. Barrowlands by The Bolshoi
8. Bela Lugosi’s Dead by Bauhaus
9. The Jazz Butcher Meets Count Dracula by The Jazz Butcher Conspiracy
10. Voodoo by Chris Isaak
11. Twisted Nerve by The Damned
12. Scarecrow by Siouxsie & The Banshees
13. Spiderdust by Bel Canto
14. Halloween at Hogwarts by Ginny And The Heartbreakers
15. Tubular Bells by Book Of Love
16. Gingerbread Coffin by Rasputina
17. In The Tower by DeVotchKa
18. Dead Or Alive by Oingo Boingo
19. The Horizon Bleeds And Sucks Its Thumb by This Mortal Coil
20. Wormwood Theme by Todd Hodges

Enjoy.