Well, Christmas day has passed, and I am finally able to blog. Sorry for the delay, but before I was able to even connect to the internet I had to remove the LOADS of spyware, viruses and trojans from our home computer and THEN totally reinstall Windows XP to fix all of the corrupted registrys. Euch. I'm not even finished with the restoration process, but at least we can all check our e-mail again.
Anyway, Christmas was very good. I got DVD's (Godspell, Dr. Strangelove, Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, The Volunteers, and Spaceballs) I also got a SWEET fireware harddrive from LaCie with 160GB of storage, as well as a DVD-R Burner (actually, it supports burning DVD-R, DVD+R, DVD-RW, and DVD+RW) Also, I got a special cornflakes bowl and a tiny racecar, and the audiobook of Stephen King's "On Writing". I'm sure I've left something out, but whatever.
So I decided that I would update my blog really briefly while I waited for Dooley to come over. We are going to crash Hodgen's house and then head over to Regal Cinemas to the 10:05pm showing of "Ocean's Twelve". If you read this and feel up to it, you should meet us there.
What else is new--Oh, I fixed both of my mom's VCRs, which weren't displaying picture. It turns out the the video heads just needed to be swabbed down with a q-tip dipped in isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol). I felt so smart.
My 1987 Toyota Pickup needed to be inspected and needed an oil change, so I got the oul change done at Wal-Mart and dropped it of at Richards Auto Service on Waterman Drive near Food Lion. The truck needs a new fuel pump and a window regulator.... we are still waiting on the prices.
GOT TO GO!
Tuesday, December 28, 2004
Monday, December 20, 2004
Can You Tell Me What This Is?
Okay, so I tried to go to sleep at about 12:30am, but I couldn't. So I decided to at least TRY and get up and do something productive, like pack or study for my exam. Fat chance. I am too excited and nervous about going home tommorow to do much at all.
So anyway, I popped in "The Man Who Knew Too Little" starring Bill Murray, and in one scene I noticed this:
Look at the door! What is that white paper doing there? I thought about it for a while, as it was an obvious error, whatever it was, because it was not on the door in the previous shot, which was taken from the other side.
Now this is what going to a film school does to you!
I believe that the white paper is on the door for lighting purposes. Earlier in the scene, Bill Murray's character puts a croqet mallet through the door and sticks his face into the hole spoofing "The Shining" and says "Here's Johnny". The paper allows the lighting people to reflect light off of the white paper and up onto Bill's face so that he can be properly seen. Brilliant! However, whoever was in charge of that stuff should have been paying closer attention.
Well, that was my ASTONISHING revelation for you tonight. Have a wonderul evening, and hopefully I'll be able to sleep and do well on my History of Media Arts Final tommorow (correction, today) at noon. (TEN HOURS AND COUNTING!)
So anyway, I popped in "The Man Who Knew Too Little" starring Bill Murray, and in one scene I noticed this:
Look at the door! What is that white paper doing there? I thought about it for a while, as it was an obvious error, whatever it was, because it was not on the door in the previous shot, which was taken from the other side.
Now this is what going to a film school does to you!
I believe that the white paper is on the door for lighting purposes. Earlier in the scene, Bill Murray's character puts a croqet mallet through the door and sticks his face into the hole spoofing "The Shining" and says "Here's Johnny". The paper allows the lighting people to reflect light off of the white paper and up onto Bill's face so that he can be properly seen. Brilliant! However, whoever was in charge of that stuff should have been paying closer attention.
Well, that was my ASTONISHING revelation for you tonight. Have a wonderul evening, and hopefully I'll be able to sleep and do well on my History of Media Arts Final tommorow (correction, today) at noon. (TEN HOURS AND COUNTING!)
Sunday, December 19, 2004
Oh Boy! What a Day! Christmas is Coming!
Okay guys, I haven't updated in a while, but I have SOOOO much to tell you about, so this may be a rather long post. Here goes.
First off, I have added my College Textbooks to my Christmas List, among other sundries, including 35mm camera film.
Secondly, I will be back in the 'burg in under 48 hours! I am so excited. The only thing is I now have to study for my Media Arts final, which I am not keen on doing, and then I have to pack up, which I don't want to do.
Anyway, I got up this morning and went down to find out if Joe wanted to go for a walk with me around Boston. He agreed, and after getting ready we decided to go South on Tremont Street, toward the South End, because niether of us had ever really been down there before. So we were walking around in jeans and Fleece jackets in 30 degree farenheit weather for about an hour. It was quite an experience, as we discovered some hobo encampments and an "Emergency Tunnel Egress":
That little red brick thing is the stairwell for the emergency egress system. Joe and I decided to go over and check it out. I tried the door, and it opened easily and smoothly. I immediatly shut it, and asked Joe if he thought we should continue. We thought about it, and decided to to go for it. We ducked inside, and quietly looked down the stairs. We wanted to make sure we didn't burst in on some innocent homeless man trying to keep warm. The stairwell went down at least 5 stories, but we did not go down, as we noticed that the door had a magnetic alarm with a conduited wire coming out of it. We got out of there, just in case that alarm had sounded somewere and the police were coming. It was quite an adventure.
Anyway, when we were less than 2 minutes from the Little Building (our dorm) I looked ahead of me about 100 feet.
And I immediatly spun me and my friend around and started walking the other way. I sat down and discretely pointed. There was a black man who had is butt completely out of his pants! He was staggering around, and appeared (whether intentionally or not, I don't know) to be exposing himself. I was laughing, but this was also scary, so I called the police and notified them that there was a man exposing himself in public, and may have been either drunk of stoned. I don't know if they ever found him, but boy it was funny to see him staggering around. I hope he is okay, though.
Well, after coming back to the dorm, I watched "Airplane" for the first time ever. I must say I enjoyed it. It's my kinda humor. I don't know what else to say about it, except that my favorite part is when the inflatable autopilot starts to deflate and the stewardess has to "manually inflate him" by blowing into a tube that just so happens to be in the crotch of the doll. Oh man, I was busting a gut.
Then I took a break, got a chicken salad sandwich and some ice cream for dinner, then watched "The Life and Death of Peter Sellers" again. After a second watching, I am still a little confused. I think I am just going to have to read his biography to understand some of the things that are going on.
I then got a lot of Christmas spirit by getting a bunch of Christmas classics on my computer, and then I wrote my self-evaluation for my final project in Digital Culture.
Around 1am I decided to go down and find out if Joe wanted to go with me to get a drink, and he did. When we got back to the room, we were just talking, and I put my feet on a stool, but the stool slipped out from under my feet and crashed to the floor. I picked it up, and thought nothing of it.
So I then asked Joe if he'd turn off the lights so I could better see out of the window. He did. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Joe, being Joe, didn't open the door, he looked through the peep hole, and either couldn't see who it was or didn't want to open the door, so he didn't. After the person knocked again the guy started saying "hello? Open the door". I yelled at Joe to open the door and he finally did.
It was an RA from the 6th floor (we were on the 7th) and he was immediately suspicious. The questions came in rapid succession:
"Why are the lights off?"
"Because I wanted to see out of the window"
Why did it take you so long to answer the door?"
"Because my friend Joe was being a Douchebag and was trying to see who it was rather than just opening the door."
"What was all that noise?"
"I knocked over a stool."
"Are you hiding something?"
"Uh, no."
"You mind if I look in the fridge?"
"Well if it was my house I would have a problem with it because you don't have that right, but since I have nothing to hide, go ahead"
"I don't care if you drink I just want to..." He trailed off.
"Do you really think I am drunk right now? I am on the Wellness Floor for crying out loud!"
I think he finally got the point. Anyway, we started talking, and he actually was a really cool guy, we ended up talking together for about an hour and a half. So that was really cool, I made a new friend.
Well, my roommate, Fredo, is leaving at 6am, so he has decided to stay up all night so he can try to sleep on the plane back to California. That's also why I am still up, I just figured, "Hey, he's up, why not me?"
Having stayed up to write this INCREDIBLY LENGTHY post, I think it's time I did go to sleep. After all, I have to leave for church at 1:30pm tommorow. That's only in eight hours! Good night all!
First off, I have added my College Textbooks to my Christmas List, among other sundries, including 35mm camera film.
Secondly, I will be back in the 'burg in under 48 hours! I am so excited. The only thing is I now have to study for my Media Arts final, which I am not keen on doing, and then I have to pack up, which I don't want to do.
Anyway, I got up this morning and went down to find out if Joe wanted to go for a walk with me around Boston. He agreed, and after getting ready we decided to go South on Tremont Street, toward the South End, because niether of us had ever really been down there before. So we were walking around in jeans and Fleece jackets in 30 degree farenheit weather for about an hour. It was quite an experience, as we discovered some hobo encampments and an "Emergency Tunnel Egress":
That little red brick thing is the stairwell for the emergency egress system. Joe and I decided to go over and check it out. I tried the door, and it opened easily and smoothly. I immediatly shut it, and asked Joe if he thought we should continue. We thought about it, and decided to to go for it. We ducked inside, and quietly looked down the stairs. We wanted to make sure we didn't burst in on some innocent homeless man trying to keep warm. The stairwell went down at least 5 stories, but we did not go down, as we noticed that the door had a magnetic alarm with a conduited wire coming out of it. We got out of there, just in case that alarm had sounded somewere and the police were coming. It was quite an adventure.
Anyway, when we were less than 2 minutes from the Little Building (our dorm) I looked ahead of me about 100 feet.
And I immediatly spun me and my friend around and started walking the other way. I sat down and discretely pointed. There was a black man who had is butt completely out of his pants! He was staggering around, and appeared (whether intentionally or not, I don't know) to be exposing himself. I was laughing, but this was also scary, so I called the police and notified them that there was a man exposing himself in public, and may have been either drunk of stoned. I don't know if they ever found him, but boy it was funny to see him staggering around. I hope he is okay, though.
Well, after coming back to the dorm, I watched "Airplane" for the first time ever. I must say I enjoyed it. It's my kinda humor. I don't know what else to say about it, except that my favorite part is when the inflatable autopilot starts to deflate and the stewardess has to "manually inflate him" by blowing into a tube that just so happens to be in the crotch of the doll. Oh man, I was busting a gut.
Then I took a break, got a chicken salad sandwich and some ice cream for dinner, then watched "The Life and Death of Peter Sellers" again. After a second watching, I am still a little confused. I think I am just going to have to read his biography to understand some of the things that are going on.
I then got a lot of Christmas spirit by getting a bunch of Christmas classics on my computer, and then I wrote my self-evaluation for my final project in Digital Culture.
Around 1am I decided to go down and find out if Joe wanted to go with me to get a drink, and he did. When we got back to the room, we were just talking, and I put my feet on a stool, but the stool slipped out from under my feet and crashed to the floor. I picked it up, and thought nothing of it.
So I then asked Joe if he'd turn off the lights so I could better see out of the window. He did. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Joe, being Joe, didn't open the door, he looked through the peep hole, and either couldn't see who it was or didn't want to open the door, so he didn't. After the person knocked again the guy started saying "hello? Open the door". I yelled at Joe to open the door and he finally did.
It was an RA from the 6th floor (we were on the 7th) and he was immediately suspicious. The questions came in rapid succession:
"Why are the lights off?"
"Because I wanted to see out of the window"
Why did it take you so long to answer the door?"
"Because my friend Joe was being a Douchebag and was trying to see who it was rather than just opening the door."
"What was all that noise?"
"I knocked over a stool."
"Are you hiding something?"
"Uh, no."
"You mind if I look in the fridge?"
"Well if it was my house I would have a problem with it because you don't have that right, but since I have nothing to hide, go ahead"
"I don't care if you drink I just want to..." He trailed off.
"Do you really think I am drunk right now? I am on the Wellness Floor for crying out loud!"
I think he finally got the point. Anyway, we started talking, and he actually was a really cool guy, we ended up talking together for about an hour and a half. So that was really cool, I made a new friend.
Well, my roommate, Fredo, is leaving at 6am, so he has decided to stay up all night so he can try to sleep on the plane back to California. That's also why I am still up, I just figured, "Hey, he's up, why not me?"
Having stayed up to write this INCREDIBLY LENGTHY post, I think it's time I did go to sleep. After all, I have to leave for church at 1:30pm tommorow. That's only in eight hours! Good night all!
Wednesday, December 15, 2004
Back to Normal?
I do believe that I am formally back to normal. Don't know what was going on earlier this week but I think I am out of it.
This week is CRAWLING by. It was 4 days ago that I was on a film shoot. It feels like weeks ago. I'm listening to James Taylor's "(I've Got to) Stop Thinkin' 'Bout That", and it is one rockin' jam.
I presented my group project today, all about Joe Collesano. He was in our group, and we decided to make a playful web community making fun of him. Please feel free to check it out. Joe - The Website "For the Joe in everyone's lives" [sic] Let me know what you think, either on the forum, or a comment here.
I've also updated my Christmas Wishlist which is back in web-page format, as my brother informed me that I could make a HTML web site in a txt file, then change the extension to html and it would work. Cool, huh?
My roommate is watching BET again. I swear if it's not on ESPN in this room it's on BET. It can get annoying, lets have a little variety.
My christmas tree looks very cool:
It makes me so happy when I look at it. It reminds me of joy and light.
Sorry that got a little sentimental. But I can't wait to be with my family for Christmas.
I'm being really disjointed today, but at least I am giving you line breaks to seperate the random thoughts.
I need to update my resume so that I can get a temp job over Christmas break. I think there is an Adecco branch around the 'burg somewhere.
Anyway, seeing as how it is only 5 days before I return, I need to pack, decide what I am bringing home and what not. It's going to be superful. Er, superfun.
That's it for now. Boy, that was a wierd post.
This week is CRAWLING by. It was 4 days ago that I was on a film shoot. It feels like weeks ago. I'm listening to James Taylor's "(I've Got to) Stop Thinkin' 'Bout That", and it is one rockin' jam.
I presented my group project today, all about Joe Collesano. He was in our group, and we decided to make a playful web community making fun of him. Please feel free to check it out. Joe - The Website "For the Joe in everyone's lives" [sic] Let me know what you think, either on the forum, or a comment here.
I've also updated my Christmas Wishlist which is back in web-page format, as my brother informed me that I could make a HTML web site in a txt file, then change the extension to html and it would work. Cool, huh?
My roommate is watching BET again. I swear if it's not on ESPN in this room it's on BET. It can get annoying, lets have a little variety.
My christmas tree looks very cool:
It makes me so happy when I look at it. It reminds me of joy and light.
Sorry that got a little sentimental. But I can't wait to be with my family for Christmas.
I'm being really disjointed today, but at least I am giving you line breaks to seperate the random thoughts.
I need to update my resume so that I can get a temp job over Christmas break. I think there is an Adecco branch around the 'burg somewhere.
Anyway, seeing as how it is only 5 days before I return, I need to pack, decide what I am bringing home and what not. It's going to be superful. Er, superfun.
That's it for now. Boy, that was a wierd post.
Tuesday, December 14, 2004
Monday, December 13, 2004
Argh. I. Feel. Like. Ugh.
I don't know why, but I am in kind of a funk. I don't feel good, not necissarily physically, but mentally. I just feel some way. Perhaps its homesickness, perhaps its something else. I don't know, but I don't like it at all.
This is a really random observation but I don't use my pinkies when typing at all. I wonder why that is? I mean, I never learned how to type "properly" so I just invented my own methods for typing and for the most part it seems to suit me fine.
Wierd.
Anyway, I have to skip class today (my first one since starting school!) so that I can sit office at the Evvy's. Yeah! It's the most boring thing ever.
This is a really random observation but I don't use my pinkies when typing at all. I wonder why that is? I mean, I never learned how to type "properly" so I just invented my own methods for typing and for the most part it seems to suit me fine.
Wierd.
Anyway, I have to skip class today (my first one since starting school!) so that I can sit office at the Evvy's. Yeah! It's the most boring thing ever.
Sunday, December 12, 2004
Film Shoot was a Success! Financial Woes
Okay, before I tell you about the film shoot yesterday, I wanted to note that I have updated my Christmas List with a very important number. Assuming that I don't spend any money during chirstmas (HA! Fat Chance!) I will need $1062.04 to pay next semesters tuition bill. I think I may end up trying to get some temp work after all.
This starts me worrying. I know worrying accomplishes nothing, but tell my mind that! It's the one doing the worrying! But seriously, I am depending a lot on my Grandma to help me with the gaps in the financial aid. However, I know I shouldn't depend on her to pick up my slack.
This raises the question on financial aid. In about 17 days I will have to start filling out another FAFSA (argh) to hopefully receive the same or more financial aid. However, this year my mom's income went up, (even though her child support dropped about the smae amount that she is now making) and I also just read an article that said 1.4 million people will probably lose their pell grant funding (IE, 800 dollars a year, right there) if I am one of those people.
Now, my school gives me FAR more aid than the Federal Government gives me (Emerson gives me about $15,800 a year in "Emerson Grants" (That's about 2/3rds of my tuition) but still, the Federal loans are important... I mean, they add quite a bit. Of course, the Federal Loan Maximums are supposed to go up as well, so I might end up in about the same situation.
But yeah, I just wish I didn't have to worry about money. I mean, when I start enrolling in Film I and Film II, I'll have to add at least 300-400 dollars into film costs, then you add processing, which is really expensive. It's just kinda scary.
Okay, moving on to the Film Shoot for "Lunchbreak" yesterday:
The shoot was fantastic, even though I wasn't involved in the technical or creative parts of it, it was really fun to be on set and help things run smoothly. It reminded me of why I am here in the first place, to make movies.
So when we got to the location on Harvard Ave, I was a little suprised, as I had never seen it before, because it was so small. But everything worked out fine, despite many problems.
One of the problems that we had was that one of our actors decided that he couldn't make it, and we had to re-write the script! Also, we had some troubles with outside noises getting on tape, but that wasn't that big of a deal. We actually didn't start filming until about Noon, (about 1.5 hours behind schedule) but we still managed to be out of there about one hour early (10pm)it was sweet.
All of the food things went well, and I really think that was becuase I prayed the night before that there would be enough food for everyone to be filled. It worked, and I am very thankful for that help. Modern miracles do happen.
I'm going to get ready to go to church. Later!
This starts me worrying. I know worrying accomplishes nothing, but tell my mind that! It's the one doing the worrying! But seriously, I am depending a lot on my Grandma to help me with the gaps in the financial aid. However, I know I shouldn't depend on her to pick up my slack.
This raises the question on financial aid. In about 17 days I will have to start filling out another FAFSA (argh) to hopefully receive the same or more financial aid. However, this year my mom's income went up, (even though her child support dropped about the smae amount that she is now making) and I also just read an article that said 1.4 million people will probably lose their pell grant funding (IE, 800 dollars a year, right there) if I am one of those people.
Now, my school gives me FAR more aid than the Federal Government gives me (Emerson gives me about $15,800 a year in "Emerson Grants" (That's about 2/3rds of my tuition) but still, the Federal loans are important... I mean, they add quite a bit. Of course, the Federal Loan Maximums are supposed to go up as well, so I might end up in about the same situation.
But yeah, I just wish I didn't have to worry about money. I mean, when I start enrolling in Film I and Film II, I'll have to add at least 300-400 dollars into film costs, then you add processing, which is really expensive. It's just kinda scary.
Okay, moving on to the Film Shoot for "Lunchbreak" yesterday:
The shoot was fantastic, even though I wasn't involved in the technical or creative parts of it, it was really fun to be on set and help things run smoothly. It reminded me of why I am here in the first place, to make movies.
So when we got to the location on Harvard Ave, I was a little suprised, as I had never seen it before, because it was so small. But everything worked out fine, despite many problems.
One of the problems that we had was that one of our actors decided that he couldn't make it, and we had to re-write the script! Also, we had some troubles with outside noises getting on tape, but that wasn't that big of a deal. We actually didn't start filming until about Noon, (about 1.5 hours behind schedule) but we still managed to be out of there about one hour early (10pm)it was sweet.
All of the food things went well, and I really think that was becuase I prayed the night before that there would be enough food for everyone to be filled. It worked, and I am very thankful for that help. Modern miracles do happen.
I'm going to get ready to go to church. Later!
Friday, December 10, 2004
Film Shoot Tommorow...
Well, in 11 hours I will be on set, on my first real film shoot ever.
I am nervous.
The main reason for this is that it is going to be a long day, and I don't quite know what to expect. I've done pretty well, but I wonder if I did my best. I think I did, but I'm sure I could've worked harder.
But does that mean I should feel bad, if I still got the job done?
I don't know. But anyway, I've been doing pretty well. My last Concept Development class was today, and I totally am going to miss that class, it was wicked fun.
So yeah, I've updated my Christmas List again... you should check it out: Here
I am nervous.
The main reason for this is that it is going to be a long day, and I don't quite know what to expect. I've done pretty well, but I wonder if I did my best. I think I did, but I'm sure I could've worked harder.
But does that mean I should feel bad, if I still got the job done?
I don't know. But anyway, I've been doing pretty well. My last Concept Development class was today, and I totally am going to miss that class, it was wicked fun.
So yeah, I've updated my Christmas List again... you should check it out: Here
Wednesday, December 08, 2004
A New Direction!
I've been thinking about things a lot. As most of you know, I am a very introspective person, and I am always thinking about what I am doing, where I am going, and why I am doing it.
So I began to think about why I am not feeling very fulfilled and happy here at Emerson College. I mean, I am involved in ECTV, EIV, EVVY Awards, Women In Motion, GME, LiveUpdate, Speechless, and of course regular academics. And I do enjoy doing those things... but I still feel unfulfilled, like I'm not doing enough. Why? Because I am not.
Sure that list looks like a lot of paper, but EIV, EVVY'S, ECTV and Women in Motion merely represent meetings, or in the case of ECTV, two meetings a week, plus my channel changing job which is as annoying as it is mind-numbing. Women in Motion has a two day shoot coming up this weekend, which will represent the first film shoot I've ever been on.--we'll see how that goes, I'm sure it'll be fun.
Then GME and LiveUpdate is usually just me sitting in a the master control room watching the program in case something goes wrong. They don't call it "babysitting master control" for nothing.
Speechless is fun, but all I usually do is set up the set, direct the guests into the studio and get a photograph of them. Not particularly rewarding.
But I think I figured out what is wrong.
I began thinking back to my Junior year in High School when Thad and I were working on our Documentary and our Raymond Carver "Short Cuts" adaptation. What made that so much fun, and why did I enjoy it so much?
Well, I realized that it was because I was being creative. That's what I am missing right now in my life. I have always had creative outlets until I came college! I used be be in almost complete creative control of my video projects, AND I was doing drama. I have done niether since being here.
Why?
Well, I think the reason is that I got so caught up in the 'organizational' route, meaning I joined all these groups to advance and build up recognition instead of doing my own creative work!
I think what I need to do is write a short film and work on getting it made. I know that "If you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything", and in this vein, I have decided that I will get an EVVY award before I leave here. And I think I need to make it myself. I need to be in control. It will be totally sweet.
Knowing I have made this decision is not easy, because now I am going to have to do a lot more studying, a lot more working and a lot more rule bending to get access to equiptment.... I actually want to shoot on film, and you really can't get equiptment unless it's through a class or an organization. So we'll see.
I don't anticipate this will cause any major changes right, now, but It's something that I will do eventually, and I know it will make me realize once more why I am here and why I love movie-making in the first place.
Talk to you all later!
So I began to think about why I am not feeling very fulfilled and happy here at Emerson College. I mean, I am involved in ECTV, EIV, EVVY Awards, Women In Motion, GME, LiveUpdate, Speechless, and of course regular academics. And I do enjoy doing those things... but I still feel unfulfilled, like I'm not doing enough. Why? Because I am not.
Sure that list looks like a lot of paper, but EIV, EVVY'S, ECTV and Women in Motion merely represent meetings, or in the case of ECTV, two meetings a week, plus my channel changing job which is as annoying as it is mind-numbing. Women in Motion has a two day shoot coming up this weekend, which will represent the first film shoot I've ever been on.--we'll see how that goes, I'm sure it'll be fun.
Then GME and LiveUpdate is usually just me sitting in a the master control room watching the program in case something goes wrong. They don't call it "babysitting master control" for nothing.
Speechless is fun, but all I usually do is set up the set, direct the guests into the studio and get a photograph of them. Not particularly rewarding.
But I think I figured out what is wrong.
I began thinking back to my Junior year in High School when Thad and I were working on our Documentary and our Raymond Carver "Short Cuts" adaptation. What made that so much fun, and why did I enjoy it so much?
Well, I realized that it was because I was being creative. That's what I am missing right now in my life. I have always had creative outlets until I came college! I used be be in almost complete creative control of my video projects, AND I was doing drama. I have done niether since being here.
Why?
Well, I think the reason is that I got so caught up in the 'organizational' route, meaning I joined all these groups to advance and build up recognition instead of doing my own creative work!
I think what I need to do is write a short film and work on getting it made. I know that "If you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything", and in this vein, I have decided that I will get an EVVY award before I leave here. And I think I need to make it myself. I need to be in control. It will be totally sweet.
Knowing I have made this decision is not easy, because now I am going to have to do a lot more studying, a lot more working and a lot more rule bending to get access to equiptment.... I actually want to shoot on film, and you really can't get equiptment unless it's through a class or an organization. So we'll see.
I don't anticipate this will cause any major changes right, now, but It's something that I will do eventually, and I know it will make me realize once more why I am here and why I love movie-making in the first place.
Talk to you all later!
Tuesday, December 07, 2004
No Updates for almost three days? Not Cool!
Guys, I am so sorry! I wasn't even thinking about updating I have been so busy with my finals and other projects.
Fortunately, I get paid to sit in front of a computer in Master Control for a half an hour "babysitting" the live programs. (GME)
But anyway, my producing is going well, I still need to try and get drinks and coffee as well as plates and napkins. I just want to make sure that our cast and crew has plenty of food. I think we'll be okay in the long run, though.
I've come to the realization that my classes are almost over. I don't know how I feel about it, because I like two of my classes a lot, and I don't want to stop them... because I'll bet that I will have more writing-intensive stuff next semester.
Here's the running list:
School Days Left: 8
Days Until I return to Virginia: 13
Days Until Christmas: 18
Sweet! I'm so excited.
Sigh, what else is new? Hmmmm. I really don't know what to say right now. I've got a quiz in Media Arts today which I have yet to study for, and I have to keep working on my digital Culture Website Final, which is due next Wednesday (Meaning the 15th).
I'm sorry my Ramblings have deteriorated into, well, ramblings today, I'm just not feelin' it right now.
Fortunately, I get paid to sit in front of a computer in Master Control for a half an hour "babysitting" the live programs. (GME)
But anyway, my producing is going well, I still need to try and get drinks and coffee as well as plates and napkins. I just want to make sure that our cast and crew has plenty of food. I think we'll be okay in the long run, though.
I've come to the realization that my classes are almost over. I don't know how I feel about it, because I like two of my classes a lot, and I don't want to stop them... because I'll bet that I will have more writing-intensive stuff next semester.
Here's the running list:
School Days Left: 8
Days Until I return to Virginia: 13
Days Until Christmas: 18
Sweet! I'm so excited.
Sigh, what else is new? Hmmmm. I really don't know what to say right now. I've got a quiz in Media Arts today which I have yet to study for, and I have to keep working on my digital Culture Website Final, which is due next Wednesday (Meaning the 15th).
I'm sorry my Ramblings have deteriorated into, well, ramblings today, I'm just not feelin' it right now.
Saturday, December 04, 2004
Weird and Busy Days, and More of the Same Ahead
Today was very busy and productive. And yet I still feel overwhelmed at the amount I have left to do.
So what am I doing? Procrastinating by blogging--typical.
Anyway, I woke up at about noon, having gone to bed around 2am (10 hours earlier.) I was really suprised to find that I had slept that late. For most of my life I have found it very difficult to sleep past 10 or 11am. But I guess I am turning into a college student, sure enough.
Moving right into the day, I played Half-Life: Opposing force for about an hour, at which point I beat the game (For the first time ever) and then showered and went to Lunch/Brunch, whatever. I ate.
Then I started working on producing the Women in Motion shoot--AKA contacting businesses that we had scoped out as potential donors. Needless to say, I talked to the Director, Tara, who told me that my Producer Gina "... is the worst fu*king producer ever" I was really annoyed, because I felt that was very unproffessional to say to a subordinate of Gina. Oh well.
Anyway, Tara basically made me feel like I was "doing a good job" but that I needed to get even more work done in the food department, because she had be worried that we wouldn't have enough to feed the whole cast. So I made the commitment to print off eight copies of the letter asking for donations and then bring them around to restaurants around the location where we will be shooting. (Harvard Avenue, Green Line)
Fortunatly, it wasn't that hard, once again my own paralyzing hatred of this sort of thing made the hardest part of it just walking in the darn door and asking for the manager/owner.
C'est La Vie.
I'm not superstitious by most accounts, but I keep thinking about how interesting it was that I ended up riding the exact same T-Train back to Emerson as I had taken out to Harvard Avenue! I even sat in the same seat. I knew it was the same train because the bits of trash were exactly the same, including a crushed muffin and some newspapers stuffed into a gap. Weird. The only thing I can't figure out is whether or not it is good or bad. I mean, on the one hand, it symbolizes being back where I started, right? But on the other hand, it represents tremendous luck.
Or maybe it was just a cowinkydink.
So what am I doing? Procrastinating by blogging--typical.
Anyway, I woke up at about noon, having gone to bed around 2am (10 hours earlier.) I was really suprised to find that I had slept that late. For most of my life I have found it very difficult to sleep past 10 or 11am. But I guess I am turning into a college student, sure enough.
Moving right into the day, I played Half-Life: Opposing force for about an hour, at which point I beat the game (For the first time ever) and then showered and went to Lunch/Brunch, whatever. I ate.
Then I started working on producing the Women in Motion shoot--AKA contacting businesses that we had scoped out as potential donors. Needless to say, I talked to the Director, Tara, who told me that my Producer Gina "... is the worst fu*king producer ever" I was really annoyed, because I felt that was very unproffessional to say to a subordinate of Gina. Oh well.
Anyway, Tara basically made me feel like I was "doing a good job" but that I needed to get even more work done in the food department, because she had be worried that we wouldn't have enough to feed the whole cast. So I made the commitment to print off eight copies of the letter asking for donations and then bring them around to restaurants around the location where we will be shooting. (Harvard Avenue, Green Line)
Fortunatly, it wasn't that hard, once again my own paralyzing hatred of this sort of thing made the hardest part of it just walking in the darn door and asking for the manager/owner.
C'est La Vie.
I'm not superstitious by most accounts, but I keep thinking about how interesting it was that I ended up riding the exact same T-Train back to Emerson as I had taken out to Harvard Avenue! I even sat in the same seat. I knew it was the same train because the bits of trash were exactly the same, including a crushed muffin and some newspapers stuffed into a gap. Weird. The only thing I can't figure out is whether or not it is good or bad. I mean, on the one hand, it symbolizes being back where I started, right? But on the other hand, it represents tremendous luck.
Or maybe it was just a cowinkydink.
Review Of Life &Death of Peter Sellers
I found a really nice review of The Life and Death of Peter Sellers in The Boston Phoenix. It basically makes all the points I would have made about the film... very good, I'd recommend reading it. (Obviously, because I put it on my blog.) More later tonight.
My Christmas List in RTF format
My Christmas List as a Document
I will be placing this link in the sidebar as well, and I will try and note when it has been updated.
I will be placing this link in the sidebar as well, and I will try and note when it has been updated.
Friday, December 03, 2004
The Life and Death of Peter Sellers
Yeah, so I went and saw the Life and Death of Peter Sellers today.
I liked it,
But....
I was a little confused by the artistic choices made in the movie. As a film major, I know that unless you are a pretentious hack (which is possible) you have some reason for everything you do in a movie. (Aside from 'because I thought it would be cool')
For example, they repeatedly violated the "180 Degree Rule" (Click here for a really good explanation of the rule) and they did this weird type of narration, which I think if I tryed to explain it would make it far worse for you. Suffice it to say, it was a great movie, but I think the people who will enjoy it the most are the ones who know all of his movies and his life story already. Mostly because his life is so strange that you almost believe you are watching some hyped up ollywood crap.
I'd say hands down the best scene was when Geoffery Rush is playing Peter Sellers as Dr. Strangelove while sitting at a luncheon with his mother. It is amazing, because the makeup and the acting are sooo good, that my eyes thought that it was Peter Sellers.
Ryan H. would probably have loved it even more than me.
Anyway, I got really mad today because I went to do laundry, and when I poured the detergent into the cap I noticed something odd. You know how detergent has a fairly thick viscosity? Well, it was very thin and runny--AKA someone was stealing my laundry detergent and topping it back off with WATER.
So I've devised a plan to teach the thieves a lesson. I'm going to put bleach in my detergent and leave it as a trap for the next time it gets used. Then their whole load of laundry will be ruined, and they can't say anything about it without admitting to using my laundry detergent! HAHAHA! Reminder to my readers: Don't get me pissed off. I'm a nice guy with a lot of patience... but I'm vindictive as hell.
Sorry, I just had to get that off of my chest. Have a good night!
I liked it,
But....
I was a little confused by the artistic choices made in the movie. As a film major, I know that unless you are a pretentious hack (which is possible) you have some reason for everything you do in a movie. (Aside from 'because I thought it would be cool')
For example, they repeatedly violated the "180 Degree Rule" (Click here for a really good explanation of the rule) and they did this weird type of narration, which I think if I tryed to explain it would make it far worse for you. Suffice it to say, it was a great movie, but I think the people who will enjoy it the most are the ones who know all of his movies and his life story already. Mostly because his life is so strange that you almost believe you are watching some hyped up ollywood crap.
I'd say hands down the best scene was when Geoffery Rush is playing Peter Sellers as Dr. Strangelove while sitting at a luncheon with his mother. It is amazing, because the makeup and the acting are sooo good, that my eyes thought that it was Peter Sellers.
Ryan H. would probably have loved it even more than me.
Anyway, I got really mad today because I went to do laundry, and when I poured the detergent into the cap I noticed something odd. You know how detergent has a fairly thick viscosity? Well, it was very thin and runny--AKA someone was stealing my laundry detergent and topping it back off with WATER.
So I've devised a plan to teach the thieves a lesson. I'm going to put bleach in my detergent and leave it as a trap for the next time it gets used. Then their whole load of laundry will be ruined, and they can't say anything about it without admitting to using my laundry detergent! HAHAHA! Reminder to my readers: Don't get me pissed off. I'm a nice guy with a lot of patience... but I'm vindictive as hell.
Sorry, I just had to get that off of my chest. Have a good night!
Thursday, December 02, 2004
Super Hotttt!
Of course since I am writing early in the morning on a Thursday, I am watching from the Master Control Room at ECTV.
The main reason I felt inspired to write this post was to say how cool it is when things work beautifully.
What happened was the show begins at exactly 9am on Channel 56 & 3. The channel airs bulletin boards before that, with a live feed from the college radio station, WERS. The great this was right at 8:59:53 or so (about 7 seconds before nine,) the WERS people ended their news report with "This is WERS, Boston" and BAM the show took over. So it looked and sounded really sharp.
Well, it's impressive to me. They are doing a really good job today on GME. I haven't seen a show so crisp!
I don't have a Visual Arts class today, so I am probably going to go back to my dorm and relax or do homework.
TONIGHT I GET TO SEE THE LIFE AND DEATH OF PETER SELLERS. I am excited.
Oh, yesterday was pretty successful, we got a lot of promising stuff from restaurants and businesses. So fortunately we got a lot done in spite of the weather.
Well, have a great day all!
The main reason I felt inspired to write this post was to say how cool it is when things work beautifully.
What happened was the show begins at exactly 9am on Channel 56 & 3. The channel airs bulletin boards before that, with a live feed from the college radio station, WERS. The great this was right at 8:59:53 or so (about 7 seconds before nine,) the WERS people ended their news report with "This is WERS, Boston" and BAM the show took over. So it looked and sounded really sharp.
Well, it's impressive to me. They are doing a really good job today on GME. I haven't seen a show so crisp!
I don't have a Visual Arts class today, so I am probably going to go back to my dorm and relax or do homework.
TONIGHT I GET TO SEE THE LIFE AND DEATH OF PETER SELLERS. I am excited.
Oh, yesterday was pretty successful, we got a lot of promising stuff from restaurants and businesses. So fortunately we got a lot done in spite of the weather.
Well, have a great day all!
Wednesday, December 01, 2004
Profound
I don't know why, but I found this post on my friends blog really profound.
In today’s educational systems, nobody’s taught to seek the absolute truth anymore. No, that’s passé. Now it’s all about interpretations. Suddenly, everything’s a matter of perspective. They stole this from Nietzsche, a little less than a century after he first conceived it. Perspecitivism, he called it.
And they stole it.
But not before they ignored him and called him a blasphemous lunatic and a heretic and blamed him (and wrongfully) for providing the manure that Nazism grew out of.
It’s hard to defend yourself when you’re six feet under.
I’ve felt it since as far back as I can remember. Nietzsche gave me a name for it. Perspectivism. He claimed it was impossible to reach objectivity. Our very essence precludes objectivity. We consist of nothing but a bunch of biases – psychological, biological, etc. – all conflicting and mashed together. Rationality. Space & Time. The manner in which we perceive and make sense of reality, the way we experience existence prohibits us from ever seeing the objective truth. The best we can do is take in as many perspectives as possible.
I am a run-on sentence.
Last evening, in my Freshman Symposium class, we had a guest. She designated each of the four corners of the room as a different level of agreement. Strongly Agree. Agree. Disagree. Strongly Disagree. She would read a statement, and then we were to walk over to the corner of the room that corresponded with our level of agreement. A four-way boxing match.
If I’d had the balls for it, I would have stood in the center of the room and spun around until I collapsed in a pool of my own vomit.
It’d be a pretty good approximation of my level of agreement.
It’d be a pretty good approximation of how I’ve been feeling lately.
A fragment.
There’s just too much possibility everywhere. Whatever perspective I’m coming from at any instance constructs my world. Perspectives are like colored lenses. Each different color casts the world in a different shade. It’s impossible to take off the lenses. There is no such thing as seeing with your naked eye in this metaphor. Objectivity is an impossibility for us humans. So, instead, I come up with my own interpretation of Nietzsche’s perspectivism.
I try to put on all the different colored lenses at once. We get the closest to objectivity by taking in as many perspectives as possible. First red, then cyan. First blue, then yellow. You art students out there know that Red and Cyan are polar opposites. So are yellow and blue. Opposing viewpoints.
Red and Cyan are pro-life and pro-choice. Yellow and blue are conservatism and liberalism. Insert two sides of a debate of your choosing for green and magenta. These new lens combinations, they cast the world in a nauseating grey.
I’m spinning in the center of the room.
I am a comma splice.
Just when you start to think that I’ve stretched this metaphor too far, I decide to really make Nietzsche proud.
I make an effort to gather every colored lens available.
A trip to the bookstore.
I fuse all of the lenses I can get my hands on together.
Research and analysis.
I put on my new lenses. The fruit of my labor. Innumerable lenses combined.
Black.
My new lenses cast the world in a shade of….fuck it, I can’t see a thing.
Is it still considered a lens when it’s opaque?
I’m at a loss. I have a choice. I can take on a primary colors, a one-sided perspectives. Or, I could spin in the center of a nauseatingly grey universe. And then, there’s always the opaque blackness.
Choosing between these options is like trying to choosing between getting labotomy, being paralyzed or having your eyes drown in lye.
Whoa. I have to go lie down.
And they stole it.
But not before they ignored him and called him a blasphemous lunatic and a heretic and blamed him (and wrongfully) for providing the manure that Nazism grew out of.
It’s hard to defend yourself when you’re six feet under.
I’ve felt it since as far back as I can remember. Nietzsche gave me a name for it. Perspectivism. He claimed it was impossible to reach objectivity. Our very essence precludes objectivity. We consist of nothing but a bunch of biases – psychological, biological, etc. – all conflicting and mashed together. Rationality. Space & Time. The manner in which we perceive and make sense of reality, the way we experience existence prohibits us from ever seeing the objective truth. The best we can do is take in as many perspectives as possible.
I am a run-on sentence.
Last evening, in my Freshman Symposium class, we had a guest. She designated each of the four corners of the room as a different level of agreement. Strongly Agree. Agree. Disagree. Strongly Disagree. She would read a statement, and then we were to walk over to the corner of the room that corresponded with our level of agreement. A four-way boxing match.
If I’d had the balls for it, I would have stood in the center of the room and spun around until I collapsed in a pool of my own vomit.
It’d be a pretty good approximation of my level of agreement.
It’d be a pretty good approximation of how I’ve been feeling lately.
A fragment.
There’s just too much possibility everywhere. Whatever perspective I’m coming from at any instance constructs my world. Perspectives are like colored lenses. Each different color casts the world in a different shade. It’s impossible to take off the lenses. There is no such thing as seeing with your naked eye in this metaphor. Objectivity is an impossibility for us humans. So, instead, I come up with my own interpretation of Nietzsche’s perspectivism.
I try to put on all the different colored lenses at once. We get the closest to objectivity by taking in as many perspectives as possible. First red, then cyan. First blue, then yellow. You art students out there know that Red and Cyan are polar opposites. So are yellow and blue. Opposing viewpoints.
Red and Cyan are pro-life and pro-choice. Yellow and blue are conservatism and liberalism. Insert two sides of a debate of your choosing for green and magenta. These new lens combinations, they cast the world in a nauseating grey.
I’m spinning in the center of the room.
I am a comma splice.
Just when you start to think that I’ve stretched this metaphor too far, I decide to really make Nietzsche proud.
I make an effort to gather every colored lens available.
A trip to the bookstore.
I fuse all of the lenses I can get my hands on together.
Research and analysis.
I put on my new lenses. The fruit of my labor. Innumerable lenses combined.
Black.
My new lenses cast the world in a shade of….fuck it, I can’t see a thing.
Is it still considered a lens when it’s opaque?
I’m at a loss. I have a choice. I can take on a primary colors, a one-sided perspectives. Or, I could spin in the center of a nauseatingly grey universe. And then, there’s always the opaque blackness.
Choosing between these options is like trying to choosing between getting labotomy, being paralyzed or having your eyes drown in lye.
Whoa. I have to go lie down.
Argh, you're not making it any easier!
I shake my fist in the air. It's raining.
Normally, I couldn't care less whether the weather was cold, or whether the weather was hot, or whether the weather was fair, or whether the weather was not. I'd weather whatever the weather, whether I liked it or not.
Or so the tongue twister goes...
Here's the thing. I have to go out today at noon and pound the pavement to local food places, trying to get them to donate free foodstuffs to our film so that our crew and cast won't starve.
And it's raining.
Argh! I can't believe it. It was so nice yesterday, and now I am less than 18 minutes away from going out into the rain to do something that I absolutely hate doing anyway! It's friggin' ridiculous.
Anyway, I'm definately back into the swing of things here, and for the most part I think that I am keeping on top of most everything that's been going on around me. Yeah, but I honestly can't wait for Christmas, I can't wait to fly down to VA and chill out with my family and friends. It's gonna be so sweet.
So last night I left the window open all night, slept without any covers on in nothing but my boxer-briefs, and I still woke up in the middle of the night being opressed by heat. Tonight I was cold enough that I had to use a blanket and the room was actually quite cold.
My life can be so trivial and retarded, and yet, at the time so serious. Later, I'm off into the cold.
Normally, I couldn't care less whether the weather was cold, or whether the weather was hot, or whether the weather was fair, or whether the weather was not. I'd weather whatever the weather, whether I liked it or not.
Or so the tongue twister goes...
Here's the thing. I have to go out today at noon and pound the pavement to local food places, trying to get them to donate free foodstuffs to our film so that our crew and cast won't starve.
And it's raining.
Argh! I can't believe it. It was so nice yesterday, and now I am less than 18 minutes away from going out into the rain to do something that I absolutely hate doing anyway! It's friggin' ridiculous.
Anyway, I'm definately back into the swing of things here, and for the most part I think that I am keeping on top of most everything that's been going on around me. Yeah, but I honestly can't wait for Christmas, I can't wait to fly down to VA and chill out with my family and friends. It's gonna be so sweet.
So last night I left the window open all night, slept without any covers on in nothing but my boxer-briefs, and I still woke up in the middle of the night being opressed by heat. Tonight I was cold enough that I had to use a blanket and the room was actually quite cold.
My life can be so trivial and retarded, and yet, at the time so serious. Later, I'm off into the cold.
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