Anywherewhat?

So, I haven't written much in a while, which on my own website is completely unacceptable!

Except, of course, that there are rather a lot more websites these days. It's what I do for a living. First of all I worked in a office, for a little web company... then I discovered that working in an office sucks. So I went freelance... but apparently working in a living room is not much better. (If only there were some way to never have to work again!)

The consolation, of course, is that my housemates are all friends from uni, hence awesome. They number:

- Suzy Hamilton (chemistry PhD extraordinaire, and source of cool music / tasty food).
- Helen Stagg (biology PhD extraordinaire, and source of practicality / cakes)
- Philip Howard (viking / soon-to-be-teacher, source of male companionship, metal music and curries)

I've just turned 24. This came as something of a relief, as I was convinced that I was about to turn 25. As far as I am concerned, this counts as an extra year of life, so it should not be squandered. Regrettably, squandering is something of a subjective term, with the subjectivity being dependent on current mood, relative blood alcohol level, and local concentration of friends.

Hence, I am happy to report, that I gainfully self-employed as the first and only member a flourishing web development company. The pay is okay, but the hours are fantastic, and I am pushing the boundaries of computer science with a brand new web framework written in Python. I live in a house full of lovely people, have a sustainable and wholesome vegan lifestyle, and wear shoes as little as possible.

Likewise, I must regrettably report that I spend most of my time alone in the living room of a shared flat, hacking together websites. The pay is rubbish, but at least I choose which 24 hours to work, but I distract myself from this by messing around different programming languages. (The bit about the wholesome lifestyle, lack of shoes, and house full of lovely people remains.)

I find life confusing... deeply confusing. I watch helplessly as my friends are likewise confused. I think about going back to teach diving, but I know I'd miss my friends. So I stay in Cambridge, and miss the diving. Writing websites all day is a great way of distracting myself from the 'real' issues with life. Likewise, going to the pub and discussing the weirdness of life is a great was of distracting myself from the websites.

In short:

1. My youth has slipped away...

2. But life is only just beginning!

3. I'm getting older...

4. But this changes nothing!

In long:

- See above journal entry.

In surreal:

- Purple monkey dishwashers!

In actuality:

- It's probably time to go to bed...

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Freelancing

Well, I haven't written much in a while, so here goes...

It's the New Year, which means that I am now working part time at Studio 24, and part time being a self-employed, free-range web developer. The latter of these jobs is proving to be far more fun, albeit somewhat more reliable on the income front. On the other hand, I've got a number of bids for website contracts on the go, so assuming I can get one or two of them, my feeding habits will be satisfied for the immediate future.

Aside from this, I have been trying to take up guitar again (which is difficult when most of my gear is in Ireland), and starting writing again (which is fun, but probably a dead-end). It passes the time.

I want to spend some of my money on gear for the re-enactment stuff I've been doing recently. Specifically, a helmet and a second (slightly larger) axe would be rather agreeable. Oh and I'll need some shoes too, I guess. It's either that, or get used to fighting barefoot... :S

Bugger, it's Monday tomorrow, which means a whole day spent working for someone else. Roll on Thursday!