Learning New Things

Since school ended I have been working on my thesis (and getting paid for it!). Basically it is doing something I am totally unqualified to do. Designing a computer database using programs I've never used before. I feel like I go through cycles as I have dived in to learning about this subject.
Stage 1: Floundering. What in the world am I supposed to be doing?
Stage 2: Oh I get it! This is when I start playing around with the program and kind of have figured out a little what I need to do and so I start doing it, and looking up little things on google (how to separate one cell into multiple cells in excel?).
Stage 3: Discouragement. I did all that but it's either not working or I read something and realize I am doing it wrong but don't know how to fix it.
Stage 4: Research I. I break down and ask someone (if I can find someone to ask... a big problem) or finally get a book. I feel like is this really worth my time, but realize I don't really have a choice.
Stage 5: Research II. I am slightly frustrated because I realize this is how and why I was doing it wrong and how I should have done it. Why didn't I read this earlier.
Stage 6: Realization. If I had read the book or asked earlier I wouldn't have understood what they were saying so although it feels repetitive it was good I had already gone through steps 1-3 because I now know what it is referring to.
Step 7: Victory. I do it right and it works and its awesome!!!
Step 8: What? How am I back at Step 1 again? I came so far and now I'm just floundering again...

What is unfortunate is Step 7 always feels really short and Step 3... it can last a long time. :(
Obviously this isn't a perfect representation of my 3 or so weeks of work but it is the main idea. just be grateful I didn't go into the details of databases... I know far more about databases then I did 3 weeks ago (and still not enough). It has definitely been a frustrating but invigorating experience... and not really what I expected.

Legend Speaker

So as I've mentioned before I wrote a book. I am doing some last minute formatting stuff (although it might take a while I might have to teach myself another program to make it work right!) and then I plan to release it as an ebook. Crazy right? This is the cover I made for it using gimp and inkscape.

Below is the blurb I wrote for the back. And just to be clear this is not an advertisement! But I do like to put some of my creative stuff on here sometimes.

Dreya, a young woman and daughter of a noble, lives with her family on the edge of a desert, a seeming wasteland that has drawn her since she first heard of it at her grandfather's knee. During one night's desert wandering she meets Wrael, a member of a feared race of nomads called Night Walkers. Unable to ignore the desert's call, Dreya continues to sneak out and she and Wrael become friends. Her new friendship forces her to choose between risking her father's love and the death of Wrael's people.
When Dreya sacrifices her home she hopes to find belonging among the Night Walkers. But running away from home isn't as easy as she hopes. The meat is raw, the desert is brutal, the culture is foreign and she can't even understand the language. Even with Wrael's protection, and Erok's training Dreya doesn't find her place until she draws on her unique heritage to help the Night Walker's remember their own.
Then death strikes, a warlord rises, and her homeland is threatened.
Only with the help of hesitant family, loyal friends, and honorable enemies will Dreya be able to keep the kingdom of her birth and the people of her heart from destroying each other.

Loving Characters is Easier than Loving People

Last night I watched North and South with my roommate. It is one of my favorite movies, and is basically Pride and Prejudice 50 years later with societal issues about how to deal with the industrial revolution. However, that is not really the reason I bring it up. My roommate, who has also watched it several times and has read the book, and I were talking about the characters like they were real people. It's amazing how much I want them all to end up well (even though I know the ending) and I can see the good in them even though I can also see their faults. Mr Thornton acts harder then he is and definitely has a temper but he also has integrity. Nicolas Higgins is rough around the edges, and has no patience for cowardice but is devoted to his daughters and his cause. Even Fanny, Mr Thorton's sister, who is spoiled, petty, and silly really just craves her families love and respect. So now to the point. I feel like I know these characters and can love them for their good characteristics despite their faults, maybe even seeing the good in their faults. So if these characters are supposed to be people and I have met lots of people why is it so hard to love real people in the same way?
The reason I love these characters is because I know their history and I have spent time with them. I have seen how they act with their families, and in the work place and what they do when they are angry or sad or happy.
Most people I meet I just don't spend that time with. I don't know their backstory, why they are the way they are or how they react to different situations.
I'm not quite sure what to do with this but I still thought I would share it.

Consuming and Creating: Part 8: Bored

School got out!
I've had two roommates that seem bored out of their minds because they don't have school and they haven't gotten jobs yet.
I can't understand them!
The first one exercised and balanced her checkbook and called and talked to her Mom for hours.
The second one sleeps a lot and watches TV.
So this week, my first week out of school and before I started working on Thursday I spent almost one whole day reading obsessively (I finished Calamity by Brandon Sanderson in a day)... but the other days I spent working on my book, drawing, and weeding. There are always so many projects I want to (or should) work on. Art, exercise, school, writing. I don't have time for it all. I was talking about it with my Mom who is a "stay-at-home Mom" with no kids at home... but she is probably one of the most productive people I know. She said she frequently is asked if she gets bored. "No, but I do get lonely."
I would agree with that. Sometimes I do get bored because I do the same thing for too long or I consume too much because for some reason I don't want to actually be productive but I always feel like I have something I could do.
It seems that some people don't know how to be creative if they are not being told by someone to do it... and so then all they can do is consume, and no matter who you are or what you are consuming it seems to me like you will always get bored (eventually) if their isn't any creativity in your diet.
I have wondered what makes the difference. Why do some people need a job to feel busy and others don't. Is it practice? age? personality? I'm not sure but I would lean towards personality or practice.