Hatchling is keeping me busy. I’m usually the first one here and last to leave; the hours fly by. My whole goal before school ended was to secure an internship position that would a) allow me to learn and expand my web experience and b) end up with a product, something I can slap on my resume and say, “look, I did that. Check it out.”

It’s been less than two weeks and I already have a handful of webpages I can do just that with. Some sites were already created by Hatchling and I simply made maintence edits. Other times I’ve taken a layout that a colleague may have created and then populated the entire site, which entails all the code work. My proudest feat thus far is the redesign of Seacoastyoung which will be cropped, populated, and live within the next couple of weeks.

The guys are great here. The idea of what a “team” is and how it functions really comes to life amongst this group of talented, knowledgable, yet laid back individuals and I’m not just saying that for the heck of it. At other companies I’ve worked for, it often felt as though everyone knew their one task and that was it, the cubicle walls blocked them from the rest. It’s not like that here.

Anyway, this is running long and though my web skills grow each day, writing a program to stop time is something I still need to learn Take it easy. -A

Hey, real quick, just wanted to let everyone know Hatchling’s great, couldn’t ask for more. Own desk, computer loaded with the latest and greatest. Got here the first day and am working on redoing a current client website… no lame introductions, everyone dresses however they want; it’s a laid back atmosphere with the expectation that you’ll be cranking the work out. And they do, trust me, these guys are good.

I’ll write more when I can. Can’t express how kick ass this is. Surrounded by knowledgable web geeks and dabbling with flash; must’ve done something right.

later.

Well, tomorrow I pack my things and start heading home. This is means goodbye sophomore year, hello summer internship with Hatchling Studios.

Things might be a little quiet for awhile as home only has dial up (better known as, the devil). Also, I have to admit, I’m very anxious to get back to my roots, spend time with family, and spend weekends working on the new house. I’ll save all my monitor staring for Hatchling.

Nonetheless, I’ll do my best to keep everyone posted on the latest. Have a great summer, look out world.

I exited to an awaiting pinkish-orange sky, like melted sherbert ice cream, accompanied by a cool, relaxing air and no wind at all (rare on this campus). Strolling through the parking lot, I glance over at my truck and instantly smile. I thought of how a camera would’ve been nice to not only capture the moment, but contain the feeling of finishing that exam and shaking Professor Vernon’s hand on the way out.

“I’m working on the seacoast this summer, interning for a web design company,” I whispered back after he asked what my summer plans were. How many kids can say that? Everyone else I saw leaving before me got the, “have a nice summer” line and a wave. I turned for the door, said thanks for a great semester and there it was: the salute from Vernon.

Sure beats a wave.

I just cranked out another final, studied for a total of 30 minutes beforehand, and know I did pretty well. Subjects like science involve a lot of memorization and regurgitation of countless facts and descriptions. For me, I take a quick look at my notes prior to class so I can picture each page and do a memory dump on the back of my exam before I even read the first question. Works like a charm.

That’s not what I’m getting at here though. On the silent walk back, as most kids have already gone home, I thought of this past week and how hectic things got at times. A few of my friends cracked under pressure and were a mess for 7 days straight, probably worrying more than studying. Before I knew it, I too was losing temper, stressing, feeling physically tired, all because of a few exams that I would have to face no matter what. That’s crap, no other way to put it.

I’ve been down this road before; there were finals last year and will be again next year. I find that the easiest way to travel is by leaving the extra baggage of stress behind. Life’s too short. There are too many things to learn; I’m not letting a little fear get in my way.

Just talked to mom and dad; going home for Mother’s Day, focusing on what’s really important in life.

We made the incredibly exciting trek up Interstate 89 for oh, a lifetime, or so it seemed. Finally reach the border, groggy eyed, barely energetic enough to speak, trying to remember how to drive again without cruise control.

“Where are you going? Where is your citizenship? When are you coming back? Thank you.”

It felt too easy, like we missed the gates of heaven and took the bypass to hell… or Canada, close enough.

Getting anywhere takes twice as long when your car is heaving in and out of potholes and french signs laugh at us unilingual intruders. A suburb just outside of Montreal was our destination, an apartment my girlfriend’s bestfriend had recently moved to. I really didn’t know what to expect but the people turned out to be great; they even had original Nintendo and Mario!

Saturday morning I got up with Mike, bestfriend’s boyfriend, shot across town and went to the best/worst gym I’ve ever been to. A single room, not nearly large enough to contain all the people that were there, a boxing rink in the middle, punching bags strewn throughout like carcasses in a meat factory… and yes, I was waiting for Rocky to show up any minute. A third of the gym was the weights section, a bundle of maybe ten machines, if that, all about shoulder width apart and never washed in their expired lives. But for some reason, I liked it, a lot. Guys walked in with their street clothes. They all had a purpose, to train and improve; there wasn’t a poser in sight. Except maybe me, the dork with a USA 2002 shirt on, staring wide eyed at this amazing place as I try not to dump the bar on my chest.

Later that night we went bowling; always a good time, better in Canada. Slept the night off, got up, and headed home. Fun trip overall, good people, exciting time.