I categorized this as "work" but it's not Roz-related...

I put in a bid on a BIG job last week and am waiting for their decision. I was supposed to know by this past Wednesday but the project manager told me that the business owner was out of town and hasn't had the chance to fully mull it over yet. She told me I'd receive word either way (it's just me up against some other group) so I'm remaining optimistic.

My competitor said they would be using .Net Nuke as the framework they'd be using and I said that I would build it custom-tailored to their specific needs, and in a language that isn't Windows Server dependent. I hope she appreciated those facts and that they didn't just go misunderstood.

It's really going to challenge me and my skill set but I think that's what I could use right now, professionally-speaking. I feel like I've atrophied a bit since my job became more management and less development.

Everybody please keep your fingers crossed!

It's been a half hour or so which means it's time to go check Gmail again...

Yeah, sometimes it can get dramatic.

My biggest frustration is two-fold: 1) different segments within our department are so, well, segmented that the right hand often has no clue what the left hand is doing; and 2) it's been that way since I started here 7 years ago and I have subconsciously come to accept it, argh.

Part of the issue is that since the whole department moved into this new building a year and a half ago, we're literally segmented up so natural communication just by being around each other is gimped right out of the gate.

But even then, sometimes you can be 20 feet away and still have issues.

I guess no matter the scenario it takes a conscious effort on the part of everyone and when all you do is put out fires and respond to the loudest yeller all day it's often difficult to get a firm grip.

Time flies.

Today marks the seven-year anniversary of me working here at the Roz. I remember getting laid off from ClientLogic about a month earlier (on Valentine's Day, no less) and actually being excited because it now meant I could pursue the pipedream I was afraid to follow for fear of the unknown. Kind of like the decision was made for me.

It's crazy to think about how seven years prior to that I was barely out of high school.

I love this job. Albeit I do a lot less actual web development now and a lot more management and paper-pushing than I did back then, but it's still great. I work with some amazing people and have never dreaded coming in. Not one day.

A lot has changed, when I was hired I was the first web developer on staff and was viewed as more of a toy than anything else. Now I'm heading up a team of geniuses (the team that is, not me) who are crafting awesome, enterprise-level applications on what can be considered a shoe-string budget.

Ah well, only twenty-three more years to go and I'm done, Lord willing.

I'm finally taking the bull by the horns and putting together a professional web presence for my little side company. The little side company I just decided to launch tonight.

I'm going to call it DCDC Web. Named after Me, my wife, and my kids. Basically it's just a way to link together all the sites I do -- sites that come to me -- it's not like I go out actively seeking work. It's just nice side cash when the work comes along.

I even came up with a goofy little logo that's a take-off on AC/DC's.