And in the darkness I walk alone

Johari Window

2010-02-27T17:15:26Z

This was a very interesting little exercise. I would like it if people could go and do this for me. Basically what it is is a way to find out what people think of you as a person, and how it aligns with what you think about yourself.

http://kevan.org/johari?name=hauntednights

Update... since I have been slacking.

2010-01-17T17:05:33Z

So it's been a long while since I have updated this. Just slacking, since I am mostly on Facebook anymore. All my updates go there. But here goes the last 6 months basically.

So I got married June last year and spent 2-1/2 weeks in Ireland. The wedding I was more than a little happy to have over. The honeymoon was pretty awesome. Ireland is a beautiful place. Not more green than here, just more shades of it. Pretty amazing. I can't wait to go back. Thinking of doing some research to see if I can qualify for Irish citizenship. Wouldn't that be amazing?

Since then has mostly been work and such. I changed my job at work. I am now a Program Manager at Microsoft. I far prefer this position over test. My job is a lot more exciting over all. And so much more room for me to progress. Lots of flexibility.

I am going to be getting back into the Camarilla here shortly. It's been a LONG time. Was planning on starting up again last January, but just got so busy with wedding planning stuff, it didn't happen. So I have taken the time to get all my stuff together and I will probably be starting up the beginning of next month. Just need to work at getting my approval done.

Also, I broke my toe. Awesome stuff that. It was pretty gross. Cracked it and knocked it off to the left something fierce. 45 degree angle break. Stupid toe.

Also, going to a couple of concerts here soon. Alice in Chains the beginning of February. Then later in the month I will be seeing Theory of a Deadman/Halestorm/Atelidas Way. Might go to the Nickleback concert in May... though really I don't want to see them. Christina does. But I am more interested in Breaking Benjamins, Shinedown and Sick Puppies. We will see.

I guess I really don't have a lot to talk about. Just same-old same-old.

Yay for assassins...

2009-07-10T16:09:47Z

Get Your Cyborg Name

Internet Search Wisdom

2009-07-08T21:52:00Z

-- "Fox News" + "Quality Journalism"
Google = 9,640 results
Bing = 10,400 results

-- "Fox News" + "Poop"
Google = 231,000 results
Bing = 175,000 results

Discuss.

Busy busy busy...

2009-06-03T18:07:20Z

So things have been pretty busy around here lately. Between work, wedding planning, pirate events, and getting ready for the vacation... I don't know where I find time to sleep. And the house is still a disaster, and we have 1 week to get it to a nice order so that when we come back from Ireland it won't be disgusting.

So... here is the run-down of stuff:

May 15th - 17th: Pirate's Plunder
Low key event, but I had a pretty good time there. Was the last person back to camp Friday night (after a very long night with lots of alcohol). Much more laid back than most of the events. And CLOSE. That was the best part. Only 1.5 hour drive instead of the typical 4 or so hour drive to get to the big events.

May 22nd - 25th: The Gathering X, the last one
This was kind of up and down for me. Don't get me wrong, I had a great time, BUT, I was also sick as a dog. The first day was fine. I was a little sick, but not bad. Much drinking was done, much wandering between encampents and rubbing elbows. And much flirting/touch feeliness. More than I remember it would seem, as I don't have full recollection of the evening. But still a blast. The next day I was super sick, and not hangover type. We are talking sinus headache terribleness, general sinus issues, coughing, and sore throat. It was absolutely miserable. I didn't party at all this night. I crashed super early. The next day wasn't much better. The cold got into my eyes, which cause a bunch of issues. But I didn't let it keep me from more drinking and partying that night! I stayed in the encampment instead of going out wandering, but it was still much fun.

May 30th - 31st: Cleaning... cleaning... cleaning...
This whole weekend was spent cleaning and doin yard work. Not fun. Especially since our yard practically exploded overnight. Don't know what the hell happened. Had the soon to be in-laws over for dinner and to discuss some things about the wedding. Also went and saw "Drag Me to Hell". Much fun. Really enjoyed the movie. Had a lot of parallels in style with Army of Darkness and Evil Dead 2.

June 5th - June 7th: Parties
Friday night is Christina's bachelorette party, which is co-ed, and has a lot of people invited, but I won't be at. And then on the 6th is MY Bachelor party, which is only slightly co-ed, a MUCH smaller group, and is going to take place in Portland at the Acropolis. I am looking forward to this more than the wedding. I am only really looking forward to the wedding so the planning is done. But the party is going to be a blast. Hoping to not overdo it, because I want to remember the whole night.

June 12th: Beginning of vacation/wedding stuff
Head to Portland so Christina can start doing her salon appointment stuff. Pick up the tuxes and everything. Probably flowers as well to get that done and out of the way. That night is the bridal shower. While the women are doing that, I think a bunch of us are going to go to the Acropolis for dinner (steak AND boobies). Since I can't go to Portland and not go there.

June 13th: The wedding... finally
I will be so glad for this day, because this day marks the end of all of the planning stuff. I am still mourning my bachelorhood. But you know, things won't really be much different than they are now. I have made sure that she understands that. :-) The wedding doesn't mean anything changes for me. Its really all for her. But it will be good to have friends and family around, and good food and drink.

June 14th: Catch the flight
We will be in the air at 6:30 in the morning (if I remember correctly, need to check the itinerary change). So we will be up SUPER early. We stop in New York for most the day, then head out of there about 11:30 at night or so if I remember correctly.

June 15th - July 2nd: In Ireland
We land in Ireland at 9:30 in the morning GMT at Shannon Airport. From there we will be spending 18 days travelling down the west coast of Ireland, and then up the East coast. I am so looking forward to this.

July 2nd: Leave Ireland
We get on a plane around 9 in the morning on Thursday July 2nd. We fly back to New York, where we spend about another 8 hours before taking a flight back to Portland. We will then be staying the night in Portland.

July 3rd - 5th: No idea
I know we are driving back to Seattle on Friday... but I haven't a clue what the rest of the weekend has in store. Probably opening gifts and such. Maybe we will be invited to a 4th of July celebration or something. Don't know yet. I will be mourning the end of my vacation however. :-)

Yay...

2009-06-03T15:09:55Z

Added this to my profile:

Pervert Pride Campaign

I love it.

Career history

2009-06-01T15:33:06Z

I have had a pretty varied career history. Not as much as some, but more than many people I know. Somebody elses' post today (you know who you are) prompted me to kind of run down that history.

My very first job was as a paperboy. I did this when I was living in Astoria, during High School before I was old enough to get a real job. It was something. The weather was pretty crappy, since this was Astoria and all. But for a very first job it wasn't terrible. It got me some extra money, I met some interesting people.

Once I made it to age 15, I got a job with Burger King. Yeah, not such a great upgrade in job. Absolutely better pay. But the management was ridiculous. Especially since I was still a student and I distinctly remember them trying to schedule me to work mornings during the week multiple times. They just didn't get it.

When I was 16 I made a lateral move (and just almost across the street) to McDonalds. Mostly because I knew almost everyone that worked there. My best friend worked there, I had other friends from school working there. So in the end, it really wasn't too bad. It was a fun job, because I knew the people I was working with and the environment was fairly laid back. But, it was still your typical high school job.

As soon as I graduated high school, which was right before I turned 18, I started working at the local Radio Shack in down town Astoria. I worked here 3 days a week, and went to school at the local community college. The owner knew me because I had known one of his ex employees. Actually... she and I had been... kind of involved. I had a rather intimate knowledge of the back room of the store before I even started working there. But THAT is a whole other story. The owner, and his father who he had bought the business from, were both surfer guys from Seaside. Lots of fun to work for. No benefits, and not the best paying job, but better than food service. And it let me put my technical knowledge to work at least some. Also, a lot of people came through looking for computer help, which kicked off an under-the-table computer repair business for myself. All-in-all, it was a pretty good set up. Enjoyable environment, laid back boss, and something that I enjoyed pretty well.

My second year at Radio Shack, I also started working at the movie theater. I had bought a car, and was planning on moving out. So I had to take on the second job so that I could cover my expenses, my schooling, and to save up to move. I was a projectionist at the new movie theater in Astoria. I actually was employed there before they even opened. I helped with some of the post-construction work to get the place ready. It was an alright job, and definitely served its purpose. I only did it for about 6 months though. Working nearly 60 hours a week between the two jobs AND going to school for 15 credits (which in Oregon is quite a lot) got to me and really burned me out pretty bad.

Not long before summer after my second year of college, I was contacted by Gateway Computers. They had found my resume online, and decided they wanted to interview me to work at a new store opening up in Downtown Portland. This was my chance to get out of Astoria, and to really get out on my own. So I went to Portland, I interviewed, and I was offered one of the two full time sales positions at the store. It was a pretty sizeable increase in pay. I would be making 9.50/hour, plus commissions. And I would have benefits for the first time ever. I took the job, moved to Portland, and started my new life in computer retail. And even after less than a year, I had been promoted and was a sales manager at my store. It wasn't meant to be though. Not long after, our store was closed due to general downsizing within the company, and I had to take a part-time sales position at another store. This wasn't going to work.

While working at Gateway part time, I went into business for myself doing computer repairs again. This time as a contractor. I had another company (at that time WyEast, which is no longer in business) that would contract me out to do the work that they didn't have time for. The pay was great, at $60/hour. Usually jobs didn't take much more than an hour, and were often as simple as computer setup, or basic troubleshooting. This wasn't always the case though. I had a number of jobs where I was on-site for 8 to 10 hours trying to recover data from failing hardware, or doing server upgrades and such. But then the tech market took a dive. Intel laid off a ton of people, and they decided they could do what I did, and for less money. It flooded the market and took away a lot of my work.

My manager at the time at Gateway moved to Best Buy (this happens a lot, moving between companies like this) and I followed him. I got a full time sales position there, that after some time turned into a position at the tech bench doing repairs. This was actually not bad. Decent pay, good hours, didn't have to deal with sales so much. Though pissed off customers occaisionaly. But overall this wasn't too bad. After a while, I became the tech lead and began managing the tech bench. So I had made pretty good progress, and this set me up for my next job.

One of the customers that came in quite often to get computer work done was the CFO of a local fiberglass goods manufacturing company. He liked me and the work I did so much that when the job opened up at the company, they offered me the position of their IS and Purchasing Manager. This was a big step for me, in the right direction. I wanted out of the retail world, and this was going to get me out. So I took the job. Overall it wouldn't have been too bad. I mean, they had archaeic systems (Back Office and Small Business Windows servers running on an old Novell 4.11 network... it was a nightmare), and not a lot of computers. So instead of just doing the IS piece, they also had me doing all the purchasing of raw materials for the company. This kept me pretty busy, more so than the computer piece. I did a lot of things for the company though. Improved their backup story for their servers. I set up a network wide virus scanning system that I could monitor from my work station. And I fixed a number of their database apps that wer not working at the time when I started working there. So I definitely did my work. The hardest part of working there though was dealing with the people. I am pretty moderate, leaning towards liberal in some areas. Conservative in others. But everyone that worked there was a far right wing conservative. There were pictures of the CEO/Owner of the company shaking hands with Bush Sr. and Reagan. When Bush Jr. came through campaigning for re-election, the family that ran the company was all invited to the invite only dinner and campaign stop. I had to keep my mouth shut 90% of the time, and there was a lot of political talk goin on... so that was difficult. But I persevered.

While I was there, I ended up getting very sick. Ended up in the hospital. Was diagnosed with Crohn's disease and told I was going to need a surgery or I was going to die... I got laid off of my job 2 days after coming back from the hospital. The company wasn't doing well, which I knew. And I was the most expendable. I went back to Best Buy part time. I was too sick to do full time. So I worked just enough hours to also keep unemployment until I could go through my surgery and get back to work.

Once my surgery was done and I was able to go back to work full time, I applied for a job with a software development company. Small company that makes sync software for PDA devices (Windows Mobile, Palm, BlackBerry, etc.). I was offered the job and took it. Was full time, had some benefits. It was just doing phone support, but it was in-house at least. And had some advancement options. Over time there I advanced to top-tier support for them, as well as managing their support team. Even started doing software testing for them. But my wage didn't change much. I was getting paid very low for all the work that I was doing.

After about 1-1/2 years of this, a guy I knew that was working as a contractor for Microsoft got ahold of me. Looked like the team he was on was looking for more people. I contacted the recruiter for the contract agency, and they interviewed me, and got me interviews with some people at Microsoft over the phone. These went well and I was asked to come in for face-to-face interviews. This was a big gamble. The pay was excellent, almost doubling what I was currently making. But I would have to up and move to Seattle. And the contract was only 6 months, and I could possibly get an extension, but this wasn't a sure thing. But, I took one of the positions I was offered. I started 2 weeks later.

I worked at my first team for almost 6 months. We finished a bit early and they started cutting contractors. I got an interview with one of the teams within Exchange. I was offered that position and took it. Worked there for over 6 months. At 1 year of work, you have to take a 90 day break from Microsoft. I had already interviewed with a company in Downtown Seattle (Smart Desktop) and had been offered a full time permanent position there. Pay was a bit better than I was doing, better benefits, but it was a startup. You never know what is going to happen with a startup. But, I didn't have to take that job. I got a full interview with Microsoft 2 days before my contract was up. On the last day of my contract, I was offered a full time position at Microsoft. I took it, and that is where I am today, two years later.

Yay for super villains... and this is my favorite.

2009-05-28T22:41:43Z

Your results:
You are Dr. Doom

Dr. Doom		96%
Lex Luthor		89%
Apocalypse		81%
Magneto		80%
Green Goblin		70%
Mr. Freeze		64%
The Joker		58%
Juggernaut		58%
Two-Face		54%
Kingpin		53%
Venom		50%
Dark Phoenix		43%
Mystique		30%
Riddler		30%
Poison Ivy		26%
Catwoman		25%

Blessed with smarts and power but burdened by vanity.

Click here to take the "Which Super Villain are you?" quiz...

Haven't posted one of these in a while.

2009-05-13T20:40:01Z

Your results:
You are James T. Kirk (Captain)

James T. Kirk (Captain)		70%
Spock		65%
Deanna Troi		65%
Jean-Luc Picard		60%
Geordi LaForge		60%
Will Riker		60%
An Expendable Character (Redshirt)		55%
Beverly Crusher		50%
Leonard McCoy (Bones)		45%
Mr. Scott		45%
Data		44%
Chekov		40%
Mr. Sulu		40%
Worf		40%
Uhura		30%

You are often exaggerated and over-the-top
in your speech and expressions.
You are a romantic at heart and a natural leader.

Click here to take the Star Trek Personality Quiz

Sad day for spoof movie lovers...

2009-05-05T17:35:36Z

http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/Movies/05/05/obit.deluise/index.html

Dom Deluise died Monday night at the age of 75. :-( Much sadness. Many funny movies owe their success to this man.

Ugh...

2009-05-05T14:52:20Z

More layoffs coming down the pipeline at work today. Hoping its not something I have to deal with. But whether or not that is the case, I am still stressing over it.

Lonely

2009-04-21T19:11:33Z

So, I have been dealing with a lot of lonliness issues lately. Not romantically, as I have Christina. But just general lonliness. I don't feel like I have many people that I can talk to, or that are really available to hang out with. I think this is partly my fault. I haven't made myself very available in the past I don't think. And I regret that.

One of my old friends and I have been talking again since last summer. Lately she has been a good way for me to feel like I have somebody to talk to. Especially about things that I can't really talk to others about. But she lives too far away for us to really hang out. And as Summer progresses and her work becomes busier (as is happening now) I will get to talk to her less. And really, it shouldn't be her burden to have to entertain me and keep me company all the time.

I don't know... I need to find people near by that I can hang out with and talk to more often. But I have never really been very good at that. When I moved back to Portland it took me about 2 years before I had stable friends to hang out with on a regular basis. 2 years... thats a long time. I have been up here for almost 3 and still haven't.

I just need to figure out what to do with myself.

Boring work day...

2009-04-21T17:29:18Z

Ugh... today is such a boring work day. All the work I have to do right now relies on other people either being here or finishing something. And neither of those are happening right now.

On that note, its another beautiful day outside. I wish I was out there playing in the sun!

Since I never update...

2009-04-20T16:21:18Z

... I figured I probably should for once.

So things are going well overall. Work has been a little slow, but I think they aren't giving me a lot of projects because of my honeymoon coming up in a couple of months. Don't want me embroiled in any in-depth projects that I will just have to up and leave.

Which brings us to Wedding stuff. Its going. Money is really tight because of it. These things are stupid expensive. And we still have to finalize on the cake, as well as a photographer. OMG photographers are expensive... I am going to have to sell off stock, at a crappy rate I might add, to finish paying off the wedding. *sighs* Wish we would have just eloped. Would have been so much better.

Personal life has been ok. I have been kind of lonely lately. Don't seem to have many/any friends that live very near by. Its really pretty lame. I get tired of being online and reading all the time. I need more people to do activities and things with...

Well, that is it for now. :-)

RIP Dave Arneson

2009-04-10T14:16:24Z

http://blog.seattlepi.com/thebigblog/archives/166099.asp?source=mypi

This has been a bad couple of years for the RPG world. First Gary Gygax died March of last year. Now, Dave Arnesson, who helped transform Gary Gygax's game "Chainmail" into what become the first edition of Dungeons and Dragons died on the 7th. :-( Very sad days indeed.

Paddy!

2009-01-28T06:36:41Z

Here are pictures of my puppy, seeing as how I haven't actually shown him yet! I don't even know if I had posted about him... well... doesn't matter cause here he is!

We loves the Paddy...

hauntednights @ 2008-11-30T19:34:00

2008-12-01T03:36:45Z

Christina and I would like the opportunity to host a board game night at our house in Redmond, WA on Friday, the 19th of December at 6:00 p.m. The featured game will be Twilight Imperium, with the Shattered Empire expansion. We would ideally like six players for the featured game, but can have as little as three players and can seat as many as eight players. The featured game will start between 6:30 and 7:00 and will run approximately 4-5 hours, depending on experience and game play.

Not interested in Twilight Imperium?... We have three additional areas we can set up for any games that you may be interested in playing. In addition to that, we have an Xbox set up downstairs for Fuzion Frenzy or Rock Band 2, and an additional Xbox set up upstairs for anyone interested in other Xbox games. We are limiting this location to 25 participants. If you are interested in the T.I. game, please say so in your RSVP. The T.I. game is first come, first serve, but people may not show, so I encourage letting us know if you are interested!

BYOB and snacks are welcome. Games we own are located at www.boardgamegeek.com: under username Gamer Ish. Directions will be sent after you RSVP. Give me a call or shoot me an email if you have any questions!

Sean O'Connor
503.998.4607 (cell)
425.214.1208 (home)

So... an update...

2008-11-06T20:20:08Z

I never update here... don't know why, it just doesn't cross my mind to do so. So below is the high list of things that have been happening for the nearly year it has been since I updated about myself:

Engaged - Christina and I got engaged in March. We are planning on getting married on June 13th next year. So yeah. Most of you probably already knew this, but figured I would post for those that didn't.

Moved - We moved from Bellevue to Education Hill in Redmond, WA. Nice area, and we are in a house instead of being in an apartment. So that is a huge update.

Dog - We got a dog shortly after moving to the new house. He is a Shiba Inu. Totally adorable dog. I will post some photos once Christina gets them off the camera.

Work - Has been busy. We are all signed off on it, and the product actually goes completely live November 17th. But I am still all sorts of busy as we are both supporting that now, and working towards our next update... AND planning for the next whole version. So things have been nuts. I got a promotion and a big raise in September though. :-)

Thoughts on tonight

2008-11-05T07:34:04Z

So not only did Obama win... but he won by a landslide.

I don't necessarily vote Democrat. I am actually registered as an independent. I am more fiscally conservative, socially liberal, but mostly moderate in both areas. That doesn't fit either of our main political parties. I usually vote Democrat because they are the lesser of the evils that have a snowball's chance in hell of being elected.

Al Gore I voted for because I believed in the policies that he was espousing. No, he wasn't the best speaker, or the most charismatic man. But his views were in line with mine.

John Kerry I voted for... but just because he wasn't Bush. I didn't agree much with him, but I agreed even less with the retarded chimp with turrets that was already in the white house.

Obama I can follow about 50%. His views are at the very least that much in line with mine... possibly even more. And on top of it, he is amazingly charismatic and energizing.

So yeah... I am happy with tonight's results. Though in the end, I really wish that our political system had more options. The two party system just really doesn't cut it.

Decision '08 Presidential Results

2008-11-05T02:29:32Z

And here it is...

Old quiz... but why the hell not.

2008-11-01T19:10:14Z

You Scored as Tremere

You belong to the Tremere bloodline, the sorcerors of the vampire underworld. The Tremere command a terrible power over the blood of others. Many Tremere could pop a human being like a pimple with a wave of their hand. For this reason, many other vampires are wary around these cold, remorseless kin. All their time spent studying, however, has left them severely lacking in the physical department

Tremere

96%

Malkavian

58%

Ventrue

50%

Gangrel

46%

Toreador

38%

Brujah

29%

Nosferatu

25%

Nerd Test

2008-10-25T20:08:10Z

What Be Your Nerd Type? Your Result: Gamer/Computer Nerd You enjoy the visual stimulants of a video game, chatting on AIM, or reading online comics. Most of these types of nerds are considered dirty who lack hygeine, of course they always end up being the ones who make a crapload of money. And don't worry, that's just a stereotype; I'm not calling you dirty. ^_~
Literature Nerd
Science/Math Nerd
Drama Nerd
Social Nerd
Anime Nerd
Artistic Nerd
Musician
What Be Your Nerd Type? Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

Since I haven't posted anything in forever...

2008-09-28T21:06:11Z

01) Are you currently in a serious relationship?
02) What was your dream growing up?
03) What talent do you wish you had?
04) If I bought you a drink what would it be?
05) Favorite vegetable?
06) What was the last book you read?
07) What zodiac sign are you?
08) Any Tattoos and/or Piercings? Explain where.
09) Worst Habit?
10) If you saw me walking down the street would you offer me a ride?
11) What is your favorite sport?
12) Do you have a Pessimistic or Optimistic attitude?
13) What would you do if you were stuck in an elevator with me?
14) Worst thing to ever happen to you?
15) Tell me one weird fact about you.
16) Do you have any pets?
17) What if I showed up at your house unexpectedly?
18) What was your first impression of me?
19) Do you think clowns are cute or scary?
20) If you could change one thing about how you look, what would it be?
21) Would you be my crime partner or my conscience?
22) What color eyes do you have?
23) Ever been arrested?
24) Bottle or can soda?
25) If you won $10,000 today, what would you do with it?
27) What's your favorite place to hang out at?
28) Do you believe in ghosts?
29) Favorite thing to do in your spare time?
30) Do you swear a lot?
31) Biggest pet peeve?
32) In one word, how would you describe yourself?
33) Do you believe/appreciate romance?
34) Favourite and least favourite food?
35) Do you believe in God?
36) Will you repost this so I can fill it out and do the same for you?

My birthday party

2008-06-22T17:29:28Z

This is from my fiance Christina. If you want to come, feel free. Just let us know so we can get a good count. I realize most the people that read this are out of the area, but if you are in the area feel free to stop by.

What: Sean's 28th B-Day Celebration
Date: June 28th, Saturday
Time: Starting at 4:00 p.m. until Late
Where: Friend's house in Auburn. (Ben and Lori) 4309 S. 347th St., Auburn, WA 98001
What to bring: Potluck style. Bring munchies, meat to cook, and/or something to contribute to the beverage table.
RSVP: Please RSVP to either this string, my email address, or call at 425-214-1208 (home) or 503-750-0966 (cell).

Additional info:
This will be an indoor/outdoor get-together. There will be tables, a pavilion, a bbq, and a fire pit. Boffers are perfectly fine to bring... knock yourselves out. The house has cats, but they will likely be put away during the party. Crash space is available for those of you that might need it. The hosts usually make their gaming consoles available during their parties, and I believe they have Rock Band for those of you interested (it is pretty fun in groups).

RIP

2008-03-05T04:04:23Z

Rest in Peace Gary Gygax... may your games be played always.