Tuesday, May 24, 2022

Diablo Panel Presentation Resources

The list of online RESOURCES featured in my Diablo Panel Presentations at Phoenix Fan Fusion 2022 can be viewed by clicking HERE.

Phoenix Fan Fusion 2022

I will be presenting two panels at Phoenix Fan Fusion 2022.

The first panel is titled Rise of the Nephalem: Diablo Lore!, which is scheduled at 12:00pm on Friday, May 27th.
View the details by clicking HERE.

The second panel is titled Heroes of Sanctuary: Diablo III Endgame, which is scheduled at 12:00pm on Saturday, May 28th.
View the details by clicking HERE.

Sunday, February 6, 2022

Stay Awhile and Listen...

I received some great news from the Panel Producers at Phoenix Fan Fusion. They have approved my proposal and will be including two of my presentations in their 2022 convention schedule. The first panel is tentatively titled Rise of the Nephalem: Diablo Lore! and the second one is Heroes of Sanctuary: Diablo III Endgame. I will be spending the next month preparing the final versions of the presentation outlines and slideshows. I also hope to have the opportunity at some point to review this in more detail with Jen on the Shattered Soulstone Podcast.


Thursday, January 27, 2022

Gazerrick on Twitch

The process of setting up the new Twitch channel has been completed. All that remains is a bit more tweaking of the audio sources. Now streaming a minimum of twice per week on Sunday and Wednesday evenings. The channel reached 10 Followers as of yesterday evening. Although not a huge milestone, I expect to gain more Followers as the frequency of broadcasts increases. So far, so good :-)

Thursday, January 13, 2022

Great Blue Hole

I recently had the opportunity to visit Belize on a dive trip in the vicinity of Turneffe Caye, Half Moon Caye, and Long Caye. This included a dive down into the giant marine sinkhole knowns as the Great Blue Hole. The site was made famous by Jacques Cousteau, who, in 1971, declared it one of the top five scuba diving sites in the world. In 2012, Discovery Channel ranked the Great Blue Hole as number one on its list of "The 10 Most Amazing Places on Earth".

Wednesday, January 12, 2022

CactusPalm Live

After a prolonged hiatus, I’m very happy to report that the CactusPalm website is alive and well.
One of the principal motivators was the announcement that Phoenix Fan Fusion is a go for this Memorial Day.
Consequently, a new section on gaming has been created and a variety of items will be added soon, including the launch of a Twitch stream for Diablo III.


Tuesday, January 11, 2022

Phoenix (Fan Fusion) Rising

So, it appears as though the world is beginning to return to something less dystopian, at least in southern Arizona, anyway. Phoenix Fan Fusion recently announced that their annual event is on for Memorial Day weekend in 2022.
I've already heard back from one of the producers who said they're excited to include my Diablo gaming panels in the agenda this year. After having been postponed twice, this was some of the best news I've heard in quite awhile.
I've submitted proposals for Diablo Lore and the Diablo III End Game. I expect to have more details in the next few weeks. In the meantime I am updating all of my materials and media.


Thursday, August 15, 2019

The Fronds of Cactus Palm...

People from all over the country, and around the world, associate the iconic saguaro cactus with the Desert Southwest Region of the USA. However, most are likely unaware that this type of cactus can be found in only the Sonoran Desert, an area that encompasses less than one-third of Arizona, and an even smaller segment of southern California, along with portions of the Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur.

Generally speaking, in order to find saguaros growing in abundance, one must travel through the part of southern Arizona that lies between Tucson and the border of Mexico. I've lived in the Southwest for more than half my life and, for the majority of that time, Tucson has been my home. In fact, it is the only place in the world I have ever felt truly at home.

It is also quite common to see saguaros growing near various types of palm trees in landscaped public spaces. It's a combination that is relatively unique to the Tucson Metropolitan Area, and so it became a symbol for the happiness and satisfaction that living here has brought to my life. With an average of 312 days per year without rain, Tucson is, most certainly, a place where the sun, and the mind, are always shining.



Sunday, July 7, 2019

Mensa Rising...

View this post on Instagram

Thirty-three years after first joining Mensa, I finally had the opportunity to attend the Annual Gathering #MensaAG , which happened to be in Phoenix this year. Four days of programming offered lots of interesting content and lots of good information that proved to be both inspiring and eye-opening. I attended several presentations covering a wide variety of topics, such as the history of some of the earliest entrepreneurs in the Grand Canyon, the practical challenges associated with traveling to Mars, the most up to date research on asteroids and meteorites in our solar system, climate change, Alzheimer’s disease, and estate planning. I also participated in debates on racism, immigration, and atheism. Some of the highlights included a centennial celebration commemorating the birth of Isaac Asimov (Mensa’s most famous member) and a talk by Adam Savage from Myth Busters. I also had the good fortune to attend presentations by three authors who I admire and to also meet each of them. The first was Richard Lederer, a language expert who has written several books on the subject (including the two I purchased: The Write Way and Comma Sense) as well as a monthly column for the Mensa Bulletin for the past 25 years. The next was Ian Randal Strock, who has also written several books (including the one I purchased: So You Want to Get Rich as a Writer?) and who worked with Isaac Asimov at Davis Publications. The Arizona Trail: Passages in Poetry was written by Stephen Chaffee, a long-time supporter and volunteer with the Arizona Trail Association who presented an overview of his four-year journey hiking the trail. I was thoroughly impressed with the overall quality of the event and how well it was organized. Every program item during all four days ran right on time (apparently it does make a difference when the conference personnel are comprised of only geniuses J . The next big event I have my eye on is the Mensa World Gathering in Huston in 2021 and I’ll be excited to see what they manage to put together to top this year’s AG.

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Tuesday, June 18, 2019

Everything in its place...

The past two days have been devoted to setting up place holders for the content pages as well as activating all of the currently exisiting links on the site.

I also created, successfully tested, and added a fairly basic, but adequate, online contact form.


Sunday, June 16, 2019

Who in the world is...

The progress made today focused primarily on setting up additional social media platforms, including a Facebook Page, an Instagram Page, and a Twitter Page.

I also set up a new Email Address as well as a new Domain Name: NickQuaglietta.com

Now that all the new framework is in place, the next big step forward will be to populate all of these places with as much content as possible.

Saturday, June 15, 2019

A bit more polish...

The past twenty-four hours have been devoted to refining the layout and color scheme for my new website's home page.

I am quite pleased with the way everything turned out and I'm fairly confident visitors will feel comfortable while spending time exploring the site.

At this point, I'm satisfied that I've taken the process of developing the home page far enough for the time being and will now focus on adding as much content as I currently have available. This will include incorporating additional social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Thursday, June 13, 2019

And so it begins...

The time has arrived to launch my plan to become a serious, and more well-published, author. It is a sincere desire I've held and contemplated for quite some time, although I always felt that it would be impractical for me to devote the time necessary to do it well. However, having now transitioned into semi-retired life after 30 years on Active Duty, I believe I am ready to make a go of it.

The first steps, thus far, have been to decide on a name for my new LLC along with designing and creating a logo, to begin building a new website, and to start a journal where I can record the process and progress associated with this endeavor.

Next up will be a thorough search for many more opportunities to submit my work for consideration while I  further develop my craft, which will include continued participation in activities such as the local Connect & Heal Poetry Workshops and Open Mic events.