NOTE:  We ended this quarter with a very unusual Harvest Moon that comes around once in a rare 20+ years.  I kept running outside to see it’s beauty (and to see if I could photograph it.)  I even stayed up until 11:09 just to see the moon riding high with  Jupiter nestled close by in the deep folds of the night like a diamond on black velvet.  It was stunning.

So, just what DID I learn this quarter?  As I made this list, I began to wonder why can’t learning be fun, easy, and painless?  This quarter wasn’t as bad as the previous 4, but it had some tough moments!  Here are my insights in random order:

• If you are not in the zone, then don’t bother coding.
• CSS can be a beautiful thing…or it can be really, really ugly.
• Adobe Flash is clugy, difficult, and scary because it can crash without warning.  But it is pretty and when it works, and it is fun.
• Pain and coding are synonymous… get used to it.
• I get some sort of twisted thrill out of clean code, properly commented, doing what it is supposed to do.
• I can read code now!  Wow!  I mean, that is really, really wonderful and I am sure it will come in useful. Somewhere. I think. But I am not going to worry about that right now.
• Hanging with the programmers and computer geeks (sorry Brad… not trying to put you in a box!) is really fun… you get the opportunity to learn about all sorts of new technologies and are introduced to breathtaking sites that they discover in their travels around the internet! I am definately going to miss that as I slide into the graphic design world next quarter.  😦 sad.
• Breathtaking sites… they are beautiful yet intimidating to a novice designer/programmer.
• Coding has an intriguing aspect, but I really am an artist / designer – that is my thrill and I missed it this quarter since I was constrained to design only what I could then turn around and code.
• Taking 2 ground and 2 online classes is smart.  I am doing it again next quarter.

Additions by Charlotte:

• If your roomie is doing her coding finals, it is a good time to take a vacation.
• Earbuds are great investments.
• Finals: get ready for the 3 “ings”:  crying, sighing, denying