Ami Chopine

So, the last few years I have considered myself unable to do Nanowrimo. Good reasons: Last year I actually was writing a book in November, and got 70K words done in about 2 months. Non-fiction doesn't count, though, and I took the contract with a 2 month deadling. Novels don't fit in there. Also, there are two birthdays, not to mention Thanksgiving weekend. And a toddler the couple of years before that. It is one of the fullest months of the year for me.

Also, I think the idea of putting so much energy into something that I don't have worked up enough and could prove fruitless (at least on the surface. I know the exercise is good) just makes me shy away from it.

Then I got an idea. Why a novel? It must be fiction, but it doesn't have to have one single plot. So, why not short stories? One a day? No, since there are at least four days I won't be doing it. But twenty in a month? Yeah. I think I can do that. I may not finish every story, but instead will at the very least start one and get 2500 words into it or more if I write other stories with lower word count.

Twenty stories, 50K words. I am sure that at least after November, there will be a higher word count between them all. I've never written a story less than 4K before.

My first task is to get 20-30 story ideas on paper. At the end of this all, I should have a handful of stories suitable for cleaning up.

Originally published at Ami Chopine.

So after some inspiration from my sister, Tonya, I enrolled my eleven year old daughter into a charter school. Her friend situation at the other school wasn't the best, and I felt lukewarm about both the teachers and the principal who seemed less supportive of the accelerated program my daughter was in. Since I'd come to this conclusion later in the year, I figured there wouldn't be any available for this year. But it turned out that American Preparatory Academy was starting a new campus in West Valley City and had several openings for 4th grade on up (to 9th grade). The educational philosophy of APA looked like it would be a great fit for both her and my precocious four year old who I knew just wasn't going to be served well by traditional public schools.

Yesterday was my daughter's first day there. It was everyone's first day. I chose to go in with her, as many parents did. When we walked into the school, I became immediately excited. Because of the part of town the school is in, I knew there would be lots of Latinos. But there were also many blacks and Muslims. In Utah! Here, my child would be experiencing ethnic diversity that I never thought possible in this state.

Sweet.

The rest of the day I tinkered around, curious about what she was doing. The drive getting her was difficult, since I had to drop some kids off at one place just ten minutes before I could even go in her direction, and I knew she was at least twenty minutes away. New traffic difficulties made it thirty. I got a bit stressed on her behalf. I'd told her we'd be late, but I didn't think it would be this much. And she gets a bit anxious about that thing. Then the carpool, since it was the first for everyone, was of course very backed up. We ended up parking and walking, and she was almost, but not, the last in her class. Looking out the window.

Eventually, we did make it. And their system looks good for safety: we now have a family number that we need to display. When it is seen, they will announce the number over the intercom and the kids can come out to load up. We'll see how fast it goes in action.

She likes to talk about things, so she was all to happy to satisfy my curiosity. We already knew about the uniforms. They also have a school poem which is a parable rather than a list of virtues. Like that. Reading fluency is about correctness and speed, and they're still working on that in sixth grade. The timing and method of correction is both strict and positive. Literature is a different subject than reading. Fantastic! History includes religion as an integral part again. Yay! So far math has just been drill tests, so we'll see how that subject is taught. And science fell victim to first day of school instruction, so we'll see there too. Desks must always be totally clean. Student must sit up straight while listening. Her papers came home in a soft case with folders inside already prepared. Keeping this organized is a must not a suggestion. I sign off her homework every day. Band is something everyone participates in every day. The teachers don't just stand around watching the kids during recess, but play with them. Rather than interrupting class when the restroom is needed, there is a special hand raise, and the student can go when the teacher nods. How cool is that?

Anyway, the whole system just thrills me. Lots of structure, and an emphasis on being positive as well. The best of old school and new research on how children learn and grow.

Yes. I'm an artist, the writing kind, and sometimes offbeat and even disdainful of some cultural norms. You might think this strict structure would bother me. But if there is one thing to know about being a successful artist it is discipline. No other skill or talent makes any difference if we don't put in the regular time and effort, in both our thoughts and actions. And any skill or talent can be learned with discipline.

I'm kind of wishful. This kind of well thought out structure would have really benefited me as a child.

Originally published at Ami Chopine.

So just days before I left on my trip, the worst of all disasters occurred: I broke a nail.

I don't usually care about all that. Writing involves typing, and short nails are typically good. But I was going to present, and I like to use my hands a lot, so they had to look good.

This is what I found out: they actually grind some of your nail off to make the nail stick better. Ugh. And the nails are quite thick, so that anything I might think of trying to do with my nails, like picking up tiny beads, I couldn't do. And though I kept them relatively short, they did get in the way of my typing.

Taking them off was an epic ordeal. And once they were off, the fields of my nail beds had become a wasteland. It's going to take months to grow them out.

So, acrylic nails, never again. And now, a few months to my normal nails, and this time I'll keep up a regimen of nail strengthening polish for a month before any public appearances with my hands.

Originally published at Ami Chopine.

I've been starting to come to a realization lately. My work at Geekatplay will simply not let up enough for me to concentrate on my writing career as much as I'd like. I've decided to not focus on getting a novel done this year, but instead to write short stories for a few more years. I've had this inclination before, but my husband wanted me to reach for something bigger, and I wanted to oblige for a number of reasons. With the Vue book out now, and with other prospects, this goal isn't something either of us have focused on as much.

In fact, Vladimir has recently gotten it into his head that I need a regular deadline to write stories, so why not start a magazine that I always have to have a story ready for? I laughed. Several things: Who am I in the writing community to take it on myself to start a magazine? It is in bad taste to start a magazine just to get my own stories published. And lastly, if we add a magazine to the mix I won't have time to write a story.

I've assured him that now that the whole Siggraph thing is behind me, I will use my time to be writing and have several ideas for short stories. Right now I have two ready for me edit: one is at the "clean up the wording" stage and the other needs some information added and a little bit of a rearrangement. Neither of these have been sent out yet.

Originally published at Ami Chopine.

The city that never sleeps. I'd forgotten about that little tag. We got in on Sunday night at 10, worried about finding a decent place to eat. We shouldn't have. We got out of the hotel room on Royal Street and the city was as busy as if it were day. It turned out that we would be eating about this time every night.

My first dish was salmon and crab at Royal House. I knew, coming to NO, my focus on meals would be on seafood, since I don't get the good stuff in Utah (except in the form of sushi). The salmon was decently cooked, but the real treat here was the crab. I think that was the best I tasted while there. I also ordered some bread pudding to take back to the hotel room and enjoy. Our good experience with the food service there led to another trip later on. We were directed to a romantic corner that evening, where the air conditioning was perfect. The service once again excelled and our previous waiter also dropped by to see how we were doing. That night we shared soft shell crab, a muffalata, and hush puppies. Everything was delicious. I really want to learn how to make hush puppies.

Lots of things in NO in general are fried, which is a bit disappointing since that way of cooking can really drown out any unique flavors. But they do it well, knowing how not to make it greasy and the flavors manage to make it through mostly intact.

We also ate at a great place on Bourbon Street (about 1 block and a half down from Canal on the right side, wide open). The whole group of people at e-on software enjoyed the food on the balcony. Very fun. The blackened catfish there was another example, though, of the flavor of the real food being drowned out by the cooking. Don't get me wrong. The hot spicy dish was superb. And next to it was jambalaya, which I mentioned in an earlier post, and is another thing I want to learn how to make myself.

One of the fun times there was going to Cafe Du Monde, where I had beignets. These pastries are basically deep fried bread with lots of powdered sugar on top. Lots of it. They were good, but I couldn't quite finish all three of them. Coffee is also supposed to be good with them, but as we don't drink coffee, I had some milk instead.

I suppose I have to be honest though. Since our idea of a good time is not going out to bars or visiting strip joints, except for the food, the night life at New Orleans didn't appeal to us very much. As someone put it, not just sleazy but cheezy. This aspect of the city is depressing. We should have added on another day, so we could see some of the galleries, antique shops, and taken some tour during the day time. As it is, the things we want to see are mostly things we could see in other older US cities and even more so in European cities.

What we did enjoy very much was the people we worked with and the company we kept in the evenings during dinner. Overall, it was a very enjoyable time and we're glad we went.

Originally published at Ami Chopine.

I have been thinking about updating this blog everyday since Wednesday night but the time and circumstances have consistently kept me away from my computer.

The presentations of Vue 8 and talking to people about it continued on through those days. The most popular of my presentations was the ones about Vue in a Maya pipeline and my Prehistoric Visualization which was about DEMs (digital elevation models). But the one that got the biggest gasp from the audience was my matte painting, when I created some nebulas as part of the scene and then showed everyone. Hearing that, I have to admit, was pretty satisfying.

On Wed I got to go to the Intel booth to show off Vue 8. That was a bit scarier for me, since I was already very comfortable in the e-on software booth and the computer I'd actually be using was literally in a big black box behind me, and the demo real was out of my control except for me to nod to someone who'd knock on a door and make it happen. That all went very smoothly though, and Vue 8 showed very well to the audience, attracting more and more as the presentation continued. It was a basic overview, but I talked a bit too fast.

So I had some more time to see a few more of the exhibits. My publisher, Focal Press, and my editor were there. It was very fun to meet him.

The Pixar booth was giving away posters. I'm not sure if there were any other ones, but we got a poster for UP. I never did get that far, but Vladimir was there. There were a couple of motion capture booths, which were fun because they had dancers being followed in real time on screen by characters. The Xsens company just kitty corner from e-on software seemed to have the smoothest real time interface and used little motion sensor boxes. I suspect they are something like a stripped down Wii control. When I asked about working with Maya they said something about their proprietary software to capture it and were unclear about exporting. Another motion capture booth, don't recall their name because they weren't so close, seemed a bit choppier but came with a much lower price tag. Honestly, I think with just a bit of ingenuity you could rig one of these things up. It would be the software that would be difficult. But most 3D applications also have a scripting language. I can't help but think it shouldn't be too hard to do that either with a decent programmer.

I saw the cool Renderosity people. That's a great community.

As well as selling 3D printers themselves, I found a couple of 3D printing services. One was aimed at other companies interested in larger models of things like buildings and were a pretty penny. But the other, Shapeways, did the brilliant thing that I knew someone would pick up on: they're targeting the regular consumer. Their prices are reasonable, they have free shipping, and they have a store where you can buy other people's designs or sell your own. It's a nice business model.

The Siggraph Asia booth was giving away exquisite little metal bookmarks. Yes, of course. Gotta get the swag. We collected with an eye for the kids. Got some bubbles, LED bouncy balls, and a few other things. SCAD had a cool wooden USB drive. There was much better stuff out there but, as y'all know, I was working.

The e-on software team has had all of the presentations of Vue 8 and hopefully they will be available soon.

I must admit to getting tired, but of course anyone would be after hours of standing. What kept me energized was the great artists I met at the booth and the really cool e-on software people. It was even funner than I thought it would be, because of them.

All the preparation in the world can't make up for the experience of really doing things, though. There is a lot I learned, and a lot I would change to improve the work I did there.

Next up: New Orleans.

Originally published at Ami Chopine.

Forward: I wrote this on Tuesday and forgot to hit that all important publish button. So the yesterday that follows here is actually monday.

Let me back up a little, to yesterday morning. Vladimir and I walked in, looking for the e-on software booth. We'd seen it several times on the map, but walking in one doesn't always know at what entrance they're coming in at, so it can be difficult to orientate. The e-on software people are pretty good at the display thing though. I had only to look up to see the cube with the logo on in and Vue 8.

There would be our Siggraph "home" for the duration of the convention.

The exhibition hall at the time was filled with wooden crates, moving equipment, and the accouterments of putting displays together. Over the course of the day, all the vendors finished getting everything set up, and soon purple carpet was rolled out for all the

This morning, as exhibitors, we entered the hall early to make sure we had everything in line for the demos. I was the first one up, showing Vue 8 Infinite. I think others were nervous for me as well as myself having a few butterflies. Everyone was assuring me that not many people would be there since it was early on the first day. 9:30 arrived and the doors were opened for all attendees. That was quite a sight, to see a wave of people sweep into the hall.

I began my presentation, and little by little every seat was filled, then several people were standing around. Wow. But really, the number of people were never a factor in my nervousness. I have been so excited to get to play with the program, and was familiar with all the new features, but was nervous as to whether I would get every point in the presentation. I think I did okay though. I've now seen the same presentation on Vue 8 Infinite by both Vladimir and the other presenter, Nicholas Pelligrino. I did three of the four presentations I prepared myself, and also Vue 8 xStream. Feeling a bit adventurous, I opened Maya and showed off the biggest improvement in Vue: that of the terrain editor. Then I opened up two more applications and ran Vue 8 xStream in them. It all went very smoothly and I was quite pleased with that particular presentation.

As well as doing those, I walked around and answered a lot of questions. Like I had suspected yesterday, it was quite enjoyable to work with everyone at e-on.

I also managed to see a couple of other booths. One was a motion capture booth and the other a 3D printer one. Very cool stuff. I may have more information about some of the others there in the coming days.

Originally published at Ami Chopine.

We spent the day with the e-on software team, mostly standing around while they got the booth put together, then a meeting about what we would be showing off for Vue 8. They are great people and I can tell it is going to be fun working with them.

An interesting thing was said in conversation. It is hard for people to have to set aside a loved tool and learn new skills to accomplish what they already knew how to do. When selling software like this, unless they've been specifically been looking for this solution, we have to sell them not only on parting with their money but also their time in learning it. For this reason, I hate getting new cell phones. Also, I really don't feel like I have time to learn new gadgets. The benefit really has to outweigh any inconvenience I may not even know I'm experiencing.

We ate dinner on a balcony over Bourbon street. Blackened Redfish and Jambalaya (a taste that was a rediscovery, and a lovely surprise that this old comfort food to me. Must have had a lot of it when a wee one in Louisiana). Good music, didn't see the street a lot because of talking to each other so much.

Tomorrow I'm first up in the morning, presenting Vue 8 Infinite.

Originally published at Ami Chopine.

When I got to the little Boise airport yesterday, my carry on backpack with all my electronics, books, etc. got searched. And then the lady came back with the halva we'd brought for friends. What's this? So I explained to her that it was a sweet treat from Russia made from the leftovers of sunflower seeds after they pressed it for oil, with sugar added. It is one of my favorites. She wiped it with a round piece of paper that had a hole in the middle, and placed that in a spectrometer she had. The chemist in me wanted to grab stuff all around to wipe and see what the spectrometer said. Well, I suspect it looked like lots of sugar and oils.

So got on the plane, me Vladimir in Salt Lake and then went to New Orleans, getting pretty ragged after a long day. My parents had fed me lunch but it was well after 8 before I could eat anything again. After establishing ourselves in the room, we went out to find something. Just wander and get something good. Our hotel is on Royal Street, and the street over is Bourbon.

Bourbon street is an all year carnival. You can't drive down it, too many people walking along it. Guys stand in front of bars trying to get you to come in to THEIR place. Not finding anywhere we really wanted to get food, we turned off to go back down Royal street. I was holding Vladimir's hand.

"You're insecure," he said.

"No I'm not."

And I really didn't feel that way but after the day, the plane, and not eating I was feeling pretty ragged. Luckiloy, the Royal House looked appealing to us, and by the time I got something to eat, it was all good. Still tired though. We, at least, needed some sleep.

Originally published at Ami Chopine.

My trip to Siggraph is perhaps one of the most indirect of anyone getting there. Yesterday I drove from my home in Utah to my parents home in Idaho and will be flying out of the Boise airport, meeting up with Vladimir back in Salt Lake to catch the flight to New Orleans. This plan, to get my kids to the grandparents house (they have some obligations here so couldn't come down), was really very simple. Which means lots of things can happen to mess things up a bit. Like the battery in my car deciding to die a quick and painful death while I was visiting at my sister's house. We haven't been able to get it out yet, but my dad who has an oil change business and years of experience with cars will be able to do this on Monday. But we spent a few hours on this bit of problem yesterday after the drive.

Coming to my parents house is more than just a drive. It's coming home. Love and kindness were the staples my parents fed us children growing up, and here I am again. People who've known me through all the awkwardness, discovery, pain and joy in my life. I wish it were the Rivendell of my life, but coming to this home is worry mixed up with the comfort as my parents are growing older now and not as well off in health or finances as to make anyone comfortable. I worry about them, and am somewhat helpless. But the kindness of my childhood and their generosity of heart are treasures so vast they spill into the lives of all around them. Few people I know are as rich in these.

So now, I sit this quiet morning, soon to be noisy as the family readies for church. Today is the first Sunday of the month, and so services will be a meeting where anyone can stand up and bear testimony. It's a lovely time, with so many people expressing in so many different ways, their love of God and Men. No matter the excitement or worries of life, this is the part of my life is that gives me inner peace and opens my mind to the many astounding and joyful possibilities out there.

And then I'll board a plane and be in New Orleans this evening. Quite a trip, getting there.

Originally published at Ami Chopine.