October 2nd, 2005
Not much happened today, Craig and I just relaxed, and unwound from the busy party. We also went to target, and best buy to get supplies for school. Target was a complete madhouse, and put us both in a bad mood, and best buy is also in a really busy party of town. We were ready to go back home and relax after that.
We got a walk in without being poured on, which was nice, and then relaxed and went to bed early.
I forgot to mention this yesterday, but when we came home from the store, we found a beautiful desk just sitting in front of the dumpster. This was too good to just let go, so we loaded it into Craig’s truck and took it home.
We felt a little silly hauling it in, and got some strange stares, but the desk is too perfect, and we are glad we picked it up. So far the cats seem like they will be the new owners of it.
October 1st, 2005
Today was our party at our clubhouse with all of my family. Yesterday, while Craig and I were trying to figure out what to do for the party as far as food goes, we came up with the idea of making Pizza (from scratch). There was a recipe book inside the store that we looked at for the general ingredients. Basically it was yeast, sugar, salt, flour, and extra virgin olive oil. We bought those, and then got the cheese, pepperoni, salami, bell pepper, mushrooms, and olives.
We made two test pizza’s yesterday to try them out. They were absolutely awesome.
Basically, you mix the yeast with water, and then stir it, and let it sit for 5 minutes, and then combine it with the flour, olive oil, salt, and sugar. Then you put that in the mixer and spin it around for a while. Once it is dough-like, you let it sit for an hour and rise. after that, spread it out, apply sauce and cheese+toppings, and cook at 450 for 20 minutes.
Here are some photos from creation to finished product.
After the first test pizza’s were made, we were ready for the real deal. This morning, we woke up and cleaned up the house, got a few things from the store that we were out of, and got to work. We decided to make 6 pizza’s for the party. We got a little late start, but once we figured out there was an oven in the clubhouse where we were having a party, that lifted a lot of weight off of our shoulders. Guests started to arrive, and we began to unpack all the food into the clubhouse.
Everyone brought a thing or two to eat, and you wouldn’t believe the amount of food that we had. It was all so good. Ranging from chicken to pizza to baked beans, there was a ton of variety.
The pizza’s were a huge hit, it was great that we were able to pull them off.
Here are some photos from the actual party. It was so busy that I didn’t get too many.
Unfortunately, it took almost the entire party to figure out how to set up the theater. But there was about an hour of time where the xbox was set up, and able to be played. It was pretty cool seeing it on such a large screen, and looked like a lot of fun.
All in all, the party was a huge success, and was a lot of fun!
September 29th, 2005
Day 3 Orientation
Today started off early. We arrived at the college at 9:30. The first session was an hour and a half brief about the computer labs, and equipment cage. Also, we got a run through of lab rules, and how to successfully use our OLS account. This account has all our financial information, our grades, current schedule, and email.
After that, we went to our first workshop. We decided to go to the student panel. Here we heard from STAC (student action committee) which is basically student government. The president is in Game Art and Design, so he was very interesting to hear from. They told us about different events going on at the school, and we were able to ask questions.
After that, it was lunch time. Today they had a table set up with fondue, different veggies, and then chocolate fondue with strawberries, angel food cake, marshmallows etc. Lunch was a little longer than needed (1 hour) so after we finished eating, we went to the student store. We bought a window decal, and went to the parking garage to put it on Craig’s truck.
After lunch, we went to another session of Unreal Tournament. It was a much smaller group, so it was a little less hectic. This time Craig won a lot of the runs, and I did a little better than I did yesterday.
After an hour of that, we went to another workshop, which was who what where in portland. By this time, we were just hearing the same information over and over again, so while they had great info, it was getting a little old to hear about. I guess this wouldn’t be a problem for those who only went to one day of orientation, but for us it was getting a little old.
Once that was over, it was time for my program. I was pretty tired by the time we arrived, but I was excited. There were two people there to talk to us, our Department Director, and one of the teachers. The teacher didn’t talk much, and most of the hour and a half was spent listening to the Department Director.
I was sort of disappointed in the speech. Partly because I was tired, and partly because the guy rambled with little excitement in his voice. He talked more about school policies (which is what I had been hearing the entire day), instead of the department itself. However, it was still nice to see the people who would be in my Major. There are about 20 people starting as freshman, which is pretty huge. Almost all of them were older, and seemed to have some background in Graphic Design. It should be interesting to see what they can bring to class given that prior knowledge.
September 28th, 2005
Art Kits!
Today’s orientation was a lot of fun. We showed up at 9:30 A.M. after stopping at Safeway for muffins and refreshments. First on our list was an hour and a half of information about Craig’s degree of Game Art and Design. The guy who spoke was extremely interesting. He had a great sense of humor, and was very honest about the program. He freaked me out about how intense it will be, and I’m not even involved in the program! It definitely sounds like a lot of fun though.
After that, we listened to a lecture on jump starting your career. It was also very interesting to listen to. They spoke a lot about internships, and how to maximize resources in order to get where you need to be by the time you register. This got me very excited about the idea of internships. It will be about 2 years before I can do one, but it will be a great experience.
After that, we had an hour break for lunch. We decided to go get our art kits while there wasn’t’t a line. When we got to the place that they stored them, we were blown away by their size, and how many there were. In addition to that, as they rolled them over to us, they informed us that they weighed 80 pounds, and the fact that we would be required to take them to class!
After we got the art kits, we took them to the car. By the time we got there, my arm was already tired and Craig had to roll it the rest of the way. They barely fit into the front of his truck! I am not sure what we will do when it is raining, because they won’t fit inside the car, and the truck bed isn’t’t covered…oh well, we will figure it out.
Once we finished with the art kits, we went to our next workshop: Playing unreal with 20 other people. This was probably one of the most fun I have had playing a first person shooter. There was so much energy in the room, and it was so chaotic in game, yet so fun.
Once we finished with that, we came home to further inspect our art kits. Here are some photos
September 27th 2005
Day One Orientation
Just got home from the first wave of orientation. There was actually a lot less to do than I thought. We showed up and had the option of going to the third floor, or the second floor. We decided to go to the third floor, mostly because that’s where the elevator took us 
We heard from 4 different groups ranging from financial aid, to counseling, and got an hours worth of information. After that was over, the schedule had a few hours of “tie up” work to do, which Craig and I had already finished. We saw a note on the student store saying that Art kits would be available in an hour, so with nothing to do, we decided to go to lunch. We ate outside, even though it was freezing, but the food was great.
When we got back, the hour was up, and there was a new note saying it would be another hour before the art kits were ready. Instead of sticking around and paying for another hour of parking, we decided to come home.
Tomorrow is going to be a full day though… hopefully we will get a good nights sleep.
September 26th 2005
Ready, Set, Go!
Orientation begins tomorrow! After 6 months of waiting, school is finally getting going. This is all that I can think about recently, and I can hardly wait. Yesterday I met a very nice person named Meggan who has helped me be more at ease by explaining her experiences at the school. Now I am not filled with anxiety, only excitement. In typical Nicole fashion, I may be taking on too much at once. After 3 days of orientation, I will be throwing a party for all of my family members as a belated “house warming”. I invited 26 people, and from what it looks like most of them will be able to attend. I have the clubhouse at our apartment complex rented out, so we can watch movies, and play x box on the large tv. I put a specific dish on everyone’s invite, so it will be a potluck, relieving a lot of stress and financial responsibility from craig and I.
Craig and I set up the bedroom yesterday so that we now have a craft section set up. On top of that now our bed is not in front of the window, which makes it a lot easier for me to sleep at night.
That part wasnt assigned hehe.
