A studenty type of crunch-time (bitch bitch whinge)
(Yeah, I'm whining. Sorry 
)
I've got three days before I have to hand my dissertation and all the rest of my work (all 15 gigabytes of assorted essays and music, I kid you not) in to my university, and I'm nearly done, but I feel like crying it's been that much work.
I'm technically not procrastinating while I write this, as I'm waiting for my work to do the audio equivalent of compiling, but good God I am tired. And frustrated. And generally fucked off.
Just... Wow. The amount of work that you have to do just to prove that you've dropped money into an education. I've done manual labour before that wasn't nearly this stressful or tiring.
I can imagine this is what crunch-time at a studio feels like. A massive concrete necklace and a constant intravenous supply of caffeinated beverages, am I right?
It'll all be ok, I'm confident of that, but I feel terrible.
Anyone else going through similar/better/(godforbid)worse? Good stories? Horror stories?
)I've got three days before I have to hand my dissertation and all the rest of my work (all 15 gigabytes of assorted essays and music, I kid you not) in to my university, and I'm nearly done, but I feel like crying it's been that much work.
I'm technically not procrastinating while I write this, as I'm waiting for my work to do the audio equivalent of compiling, but good God I am tired. And frustrated. And generally fucked off.
Just... Wow. The amount of work that you have to do just to prove that you've dropped money into an education. I've done manual labour before that wasn't nearly this stressful or tiring.
I can imagine this is what crunch-time at a studio feels like. A massive concrete necklace and a constant intravenous supply of caffeinated beverages, am I right?
It'll all be ok, I'm confident of that, but I feel terrible.
Anyone else going through similar/better/(godforbid)worse? Good stories? Horror stories?
Replies
BUt now that I have recovered, I feel a lot stronger then before and can't wait for the next year to do better and better.
ps dont worry it will be over soon then the drinking can start in ernest
I just graduated in May with my Bachelor's, and by the time my final portfolio review rolled around (counting the 8 hours or so we spent sitting in a room listening to people talk and teachers critique) I had stayed up for probably around 36 hours straight (I think it was the longest consecutive amount of time I had stayed up).
Sitting and listening for 8 hours is not easy at that point. :-) I would get up and leave the room for a bit and lay down on the couch outside in the hall for a few minutes (maybe dozing off for a little bit) and then come back in.
I ended up still having to change some things and finish up in order to get my signatures to graduate (after sleep) but thankfully I've finished.
Hang in there! :-)
I cant wait to get out of college so i can work on one thing...
Its not so much the amount of work thats fucking me its the fact that there is 4 different things that i have to work on simoultaneiously and add that to work.
Im at a stage where if i work on one thing i feel guilty for not working on the others as it seems no matter how much i work im always behind
Man 6 months at it will be over... hopefully.
also, shep, I am jealuuuuss
(i member bak wen i wuz n skool. no sleep. c-ing sun rise. bwap)
Muzz: Thats a lot of what I'm feeling right now. Plus the idea of being paid to do this is rather better than paying to do it
About a year and a half ago, I worked for 49 hours straight with no breaks. (didn't even break for meals, just noshed granola bars at my desk) During the daylight hours, I would have the client whose project I was working on come in, look over my shoulder while I worked, and swear at me for how long this was taking, and how he shouldn't have to pay for this. The whole point of this miserable marathon stretch was that the client had decided he didn't like the content management system we had ALREADY gotten working with his site, and I had to re-code the entire site in standard HTML, with all the same basic features, in time to meet a release date.
This is obviously a worst-case scenario example. But it actually happened at a salaried job I had. HAD. I'm mildly grateful to be working at an hourly position that pays better, and pays overtime.
The worst school work doens't even come close to the worst work-work.
In the same boat dude
Just wait till you have to deal with
Lazy lying assholes that work for you
Annoying clients
Fee grinding lawyers
projects that dont stick to budget
Bieng assraped on tax
And finally..
Steviant, dude. Uni crunch is way better than real life crunch. Get ready for finishing uni and wondering wtf you're gonna do next
I do wonder what a proper (i.e. non games art and design) degree is like though, I have more respect for people who have shit loads of assignments and what not to get on with.
Richard - that sounds fucking rough, quite why you got verbal while doing that i dont know T_T
It's an awesome change of pace to go home and lose myself in her world. I'm just sad that some day she's going to grow up and think acting that way is beneath her. I'll probably miss the blanket forts, trips to the desert (sandy soccer field by our house), trips to the forest (small patch of trees) and I'm sure I'll miss the robot (ant) hunts too.
When she stops and stares at something it makes me take notice of it too. I get to absorb a bunch of ref while I'm out and about. If its watching other people run and play with their kids, or environmental stuff, its all stuff I normally wouldn't soak up.
Seriously I wouldn't trade that for more screen time. Seeing those little AH-HA moments and watching her see things for the first time is wild beyond belief. The zoo, holy crap it blows her mind which blows mine.
Kids are only a drag if you look at them that way. They pick up on it and become more of a drag the more you treat them that way. You get out what you put in, just like everything else.
/off soapbox
Coffee is your saviour.
Well... coffee, and good planning (but then the only planning you should be doing at uni is working out where to get your next drink or where you want the cue-ball to end up after this shot).
That said, now I'm working, I've yet to crunch as hard as I did at uni, so I guess it's good practice.
It's all coming together now, and it would probably have all been finished today if I'd actually slept last night (which I couldn't, not because I was working, just insomnia) and I wasn't a zombie today, but meh. It'll still be in a day early (giving yourself fake deadlines really seems to work) and it all sounds/looks/is brilliant.
Coffee and hard work pays off, it seems
HAHAA. On the opposite end of Vig's glowing recommendation, I give you exhibit A:
[ame]
An ad which I am reminded of occasionally when my kiddo decides to unleash his terrible twos. Is my kid a curse and no fun or rewarding to raise? No. Is my kid probably a lot more of a handful than Vig's because young boys tend to be more energetic, rough and tumble, and daredevil-esque in their activities than girls? Maybe, or maybe Vig is just highlighting the fun times. My point is, no matter what way you slant it, being a parent is a lot of work, a lot of time dedicated, with an uncontrollable schedule, and one of the craziest 'clients' you'll ever encounter.
Am I jaded a tad? Sure. Do I love my son and have a ton of fun with him? Most definitely.
Point is, in response to the thread starter, the crunch times college throw at you are to prepare you for the crunch times life throws at you, whether its hitting a hard deadline at a job, parenting, etc and how to get your way out from the mountain of work in front of you. Grit your teeth, work hard, solve problems and when you come out on top, or even if you fail sometimes, if you learn from it, you'll be a better person. Venting on an internet forum should always result in you getting smacked upside the head with a dose of "hey that's life" reality lessons.
/soapbox.
"Want to watch Cinderella or Cars?" "Cars."
"Tinker Bell or Incredibles?" "krab-ells"
"Barbie or dad's Legos?" "Legos."
"Want to put dads light saber down?" "no."
"Want to stop jumping off the couch? "no."
She still has her moments and there have been more than a few occasions we've had to march her beat red little face out of the store or restaurant so its not all puppies and ice cream. There have been plenty of times I've told her that her kids will drive before she ever does.
But holy hell is she fun when she's happy.
For me what's making the terrible twos easier to deal with, is not to view it at as a power struggle when they flip out. But to view it that they're overwhelmed and unable to communicate it.
I'm sure every kid is different and boys are probably harder to deal with, I know my nephews where tougher at this time than Layne is. But the more fun time I put in with her the easier she is to manage on the down times.
It's not something anyone should rush into and some people should avoid them at all costs. Especially if you see them as taking away your quality of life instead of adding to it.
But it bugs me when people portray them as evil little boat anchors. They can be sure, but there's a lot that parents can do to avoid that...
Hook to the jaw works well. :thumbup:
Im a young guy so i am not even thinking about that at any stage, but whenever ive had to look after somones kid, i found that it did vary greatly in how easy it was depending on the child. But then again i have never looked after really young kids.
With this student stuff im sure none of us are trying to imply that we have it harder than dudes in industry, but you must admit that it can be a time of really high stress.
Also just like some kids are easy to look after and others hard, unis and colleges differ greatly as well as peoples experiences with them.
I personally dont have an issue so much with the amount of work but trying to learn 3-4 subjects and put them into practice on completly different projects is what takes it out of me. Its a case of where if i want to do a job on one that im proud of the others have to suffer. At least when you are at work you get to focus on one thing, which makes the work alot easier to deal with.
Now add on a job that expects you to do as much work part time as the guys working full time and you can see where the source of my annoyance comes from. I just want to be ahead of the game for once, not draging behind on a rope.
Another thing dudes, if somone is having a really stressed with thier work, the last thing you want to tell them is that it will only get worse and saying you have it worse is just a form of oneup manship.
Yeah sure crunch time is an absolute bitch, but how much of the year are you actually in crunch time?
If your biggest problem in life is finals time in college, your life is pretty nice. Everyone gets those busy times in life, you work hard and overcome them, but what are people supposed to tell ya if you complain? Pick up your helmet and keep goin soldier, that's life and it isn't getting any easier by itself, you just learn to handle it better! (or you don't learn to handle it better and become a senile loser that nobody likes.)
Bring "School" back into this and I've also done a research project, a dissertation and 3 other essays.
All of this in the last month and a half (yes, I could have started earlier, yes, thats my own fault, but still).
And, if I say so myself, it's all pretty good, too, now it's finished.
So yeah, I think I rather earned my right to vent
Next week I start an internship, however, so I'll have a reference point when it comes to the differences between working in that industry and studying for it. After that, I might eat my words about how hard this experience was
I have honestly found pro studio work a little nicer than being a student. It comes down to doing what you enjoy (games) and getting paid for it, as opposed to doing something that's been crunched hard in to you and then paying for doing so.
But it is hard no matter what. There is no sweet release!
also, posting on the internetz while on holiday=fail :thumbdown:
There probably is alot more to be done now than in school (no doubt, actually) but school was also a lot less social, it was pretty much just working on your own, locked in a room, solitary. And I prefer the work at work...
PS
I'm just back in london for a few hours before training it to my girlfriends family for the rest of the week, I'm not online in Barcelona, that'd be epic fail.