24-JUL-2007

What’s On My Desk

Just to let you have a glimpse into where the magic happens, here’s what the R&D director’s desk looks like:

Every square inch of my desk is covered by something, sometimes layers of things. My printer, cable modem and router sit on the top shelf keeping two coffee mugs full of pens company. A pair of speakers, a box of pens, a stapler, and a series of texture CDs fill in the blank spaces.

Oh the left of the main desk is a corkboard with a color printout of each city-state’s color scheme, a ruler (inches, centimeters, points & picas), a short list of how the web site should be mapped out, a grocery list from about 3 months ago, and my holiday wish list. Then there’s a huge honkin’ CRT monitor; it’s only 17” but it’s a 6+ year old monstrosity that uses up most of the available writing space.

The right side of the desk has cubbyholes for magazines and such. My use is to hold 15 or more manilla envelopes stuffed with early concept art by Rob Hinds and Justin Norman. There are a few DVDs on Maya along with more texture and font CDs. There’s a stuffed Angry Beaver and my World of Warcraft discs wedged into the bottom space.

The actual flat surface of the desk is covered in post-it notes that detail rules changes and playtester comments. There’s also a phone number that I have no idea whose it is. A bottle of Afrin is nearby because allergies drove my sinuses into severe pain last week. A firewire cable sits in a heap connected to a mini mp3 player I never use. I’ve got my trusty red Swingline stapler handy, multiple 3-ring binders with playtest cards, notes, references from multiple historical and fictional sources, a flourescent green clipboard with the most current rules printout, a PMS color swatch book, a few Lotto tickets (I won $11!!), a bottle of Arizona tea, my cell phone, two watches that need new straps, a broken popsicle stick, and the obligatory spoon.