Getting It Started

On December 10, 2012, I will complete my Bachelors in IT/Web Development.  By that time, it is my intention to have my own web development business.  Last night, I started putting together my business website.

I’m ready to start some web development services now, such as setting up WordPress sites with widgets, plug-ins, custom artwork, migration services, setting up hosting, and all that good stuff.

This is what I’ve spent the last three years learning to do.  Now that it’s year four, it’s time to get into motion.  I won’t quit my day job for awhile, but I’m taking this next year to grow into this.  I don’t have to do it all at once.

Today, I’m studying networks and servers.  Interesting stuff.

Duh…

Over the weekend, I was playing around with Photoshop and came up with a really awesome image.  I saved it to .jpg and decided it was so cool I needed to make a website just to use that image on.

I coded the main page of the website, and it was absolutely gorgeous…except for one thing.  My nav was wonky.  Yep…my navigation bar was beautiful, but it wasn’t lined up in the right way.

I thought I tried everything.  Then, I just started clutching at straws.  I attempted stuff with CSS and with HTML.  I opened it up in Dreamweaver and checked everything out.  I just couldn’t see my error.

I guess this was a case of needing to put it down for a day and then approaching it again.  This morning – before I even had my coffee – I opened the code again and inserted a <div, and voila…it was perfect.  Go figure…

It’s amazing how one little tag in the wrong place can mess things up.  I usually go wrong in CSS by leaving off a semi-colon.

Now I can insert my links and make page two.

I think I’m going to use that website for my web design business site since the artwork came out so well.

I’ve been studying for my Adobe ACE certification for Photoshop.  I thought I would do the Dreamweaver cert after that, but now I’m starting to consider taking the tests at the same time.  I’m not sure yet.  This is certainly not the easiest test I’ve ever prepared for.  I guess if it were easy then more people would do it.

I started my Network and Telecommunications Concepts class today.  We’re starting off with voice communications.  Cool.  My first assignment is to write a paper on:

• Rotary and Dual Tone Multi-frequency (DTMF)
• Wide Area Telecommunications Service (WATS) and leased lines
• Private Branch eXchange (PBX) and Centrex
• The layers of the International Organization for Standardization-Open Systems Interconnection (ISO-OSI) model

Yep…I got this…

First Goal Met!

Today, I achieved my first weight loss goal – 10 pounds gone!  The food in this picture weighs 10 pounds.  That’s how much I’ve lost.

Losing 10 pounds is no easy feat, but particularly not around the holidays.  I cheated a lot, and I didn’t exercise at all, so this is pretty good.

My next goal is to lose another 10 pounds the second month.  I’m going to start incorporating exercise today.  I’ll use a combination of things, but a big part of it will be my Wii Fit.  I like Wii Fit running.

Jenny Craig is by far the best diet I’ve ever been on.

The Nutcracker – Houston Ballet

Tonight, we’re going to the see The Nutcracker performed by the Houston Ballet.  I’m so excited!  This is something I’ve been wanting to do since I was ten years old and our fifth grade music teacher brought Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker” to music class.  It was so exciting to hear about the magic and to listen to the “Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy”.  I don’t remember the name of the music teacher, but I never forgot about my dream to see The Nutcracker ballet.

It’s fun to get really dressed up in your Christmas finest and to drive to downtown Houston in the chilly weather amidst all the Christmas lights for a little culture.  There may be hot chocolate afterwards.