It's a brand new day...

I'm glad to have finally figured out my account enough to make a post. The new site looks terrific, and I'm really looking forward to being a part of this community this semester.

It looks like an interesting semester ahead of me. There's a lot to learn and communicate, and not just by quoting "Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Long-Blog" in the title field. Yeah, in that context the title becomes a little funnier/ more ominous.

Anyhow, there are some interesting things on the horizon. The first is that there's an Alternate Reality Game brewing at UNC. The brainchild of Ph.D. student Laura Christopherson, it has some interesting possibilities. While I can't reveal to much-- I signed a NDA-- I can say that it involves the wacky goings on that surround a couple's engagement. It looks to be very much designed to teach as well as provide entertainment, and hopefully to help students navigate the wackiness in their own relationships.

In the interest of full disclosure, I should say that I had volunteered to help with the project, but had to leave once the semester started. It was a combination of a busy schedule, and of my personal feeling that I had no talent whatsoever in designing the kind of game the other members of the committee had in mind. However, I do plan to keep an eye on the project and report what I see. It won't actually be airing for several months, but when it does I'll let you know. The working title, as of this posting, is "Brandon and Nichole Get Engaged."

I'm getting a bit closer to putting together my MLS thesis. I'm doing preliminary research on the minor phenomenon of bilingual guilds in World of Warcraft. These guilds exist as a way for people from different cultures to bridge gaps and communicate, and strike me as a glorious idea. On the interwebs, many people have expressed an interest in learning a language via a guild. Again, a glorious idea, but with questions attached: Will it work? Why or why not? I'll be exploring this topic for a couple semesters. Let me know if you have any ideas, connections, or input. I'm starting to put some feelers out to a few guilds that look promising, but if anyone has an inside connection, please let me know!

Edit: I decided to spell Laura's name right.