Howdy, family and assorted loved ones -
I finally decided to begin this whole blog thing... after sort of researching other possible blog sites to host it on. This seemed easy and quickly done, so here it is. I may change it (the site) down the road, but at least for now I have something written and 'out there'.
In August I began my new [life] adventure in the wacky world of broadcasting (A.K.A. "RTV", to us students) at Specs Howard, located in Southfield. I had all good intentions of publishing a weekly update to let anyone interested know what was up, how things were progressing, how I was feeling, and what the home happenings were, too. Of course, that lasted all of two or three emails-worth. Then, one of the kids in my class said I should either pod-cast or blog, and I would be able to add my weekly sound work from the TV and radio sessions to the site as links. So, now all I have to down is convert my class work to DVD or CD so that I can upload them for your amusement. Trust me, they will be amusing. The grades have been pretty good overall, and it has been a whirlwind of note taking, practicals, and mid-terms. Lowest grade has been a B. Rats!
Each quarter is 8 weeks long... but it turns out we get 1 whole week off between the end of one quarter and the beginning of the next! Wahooooo!! Almost becomes 100% fun with that knowledge. Graduation from this will be on April 11, 2008.
To date, we have managed to get through 6 weeks of Q1 with a small handfull of drop-outs from the original roster of students. Lots of students randomly miss days - and it does make a difference. While I've missed half of one day due to Brian and his kidney stones, I have managed to keep up (and enjoy 90% of it all), and even enjoyed working as a WCSX workforce intern member at the Pontiac Arts, Beats and Eats one hot afternoon. In November, I will have another coveted (early) intern opportunity at a station in Dearborn, helping with the production of a parochial HS quiz bowl show. It will allow me hands-on experience and screen credit for my resume. Pretty cool, eh!?! All very necessary for future employment and better pay in my early employment in this field.
I have also taken part in a screenwriting course given by one of the instructors at SHS - Ross Marroso is also a chopper pilot/reporter for WDIV, channel 4 in Detroit. Moreover, he is an accomplished screenwriter in his own right, having written and produced several of his own Indie films. Had a great time in the class, even though it was a long day for those dates - the nights ended at 10:30 in the evening, after sitting at class for 4.5 hours. The additional 3 hours was a bit much. But, the instruction was invaluable, and much cheaper than the course I could have taken at the community college. We were also given student copies of a screenwriting tool to be able to try our hand at starting a story. One of the kids in my SHS class heard me discussing it, and gave me... um... access to an upgraded version of the same tool. So, I am happily writing my full-length story, and have a lot of help from the tool to make it work. THANK YOU, RICK!! The first scene of my script was read in class, and received a lot of thumbs up, and many questions about "what's next?", etc., so I am quite happy. Guess what I will be doing during much of my week off between quarters? :^)
In mid-October I will be going to a 4 hour seminar for in-depth PA (Production Assistant) training, so as to be able to join a forming production soon to film an Indie here in the Detroit area! There will be actual PA instruction in a couple of the coming SHS quarters, but to be able to join this cast and crew, I need to be a little more advanced. Soooo.... again, the experience will be a boon.
All in all, very exciting, and very cool. I am beginning!
To fill you in on Brian and his stones: He had an earlier episode of passing [a] stone[s] approx. late June to mid-July, but with the advent of this latest set, we sought help from the medical profession. He was admitted to Crittenton for 24 hour observation, but that turned into 4 days after he got a taste of their jello. Silly boy. He did pass a small stone the first night he was upstairs in a room, but after pointing it out to the nurse on duty, she washed it down the drain saying she thought it was no more than "something on the screen" (yeah. ya think!?!?!). Something that wasn't there before he used the screen... something that actually came out of him. Some people! He feels much better, but still needs to get in to a regular doc, and visit the urologist recommended for follow-up. Anybody else want to nag at him for a while, please?
Karl's second year at OTC (Oakland Tech Campus), in the Mixed Media program, began early in September, and he is closed-mouth about what is going on. Will be speaking with the instructor again to emphasize the importance of adding other software for him to learn, or at least making certain he has completely masterd all of the Adobe Suite offered. He seems more interested in the Maya tool, which is GREAT! But, as more places have Adobe and not Maya, he should be as versed in all such SW to be as marketable as possible for the employers who will be taking a chance on him.
Anyway, it it time to get dinner going, and I have been stalling on getting started with a Monday assignment - a four minute ad-lib speech. I think I have the topic, but need to flesh in the rest of the 00:03:45.... LOL! So, I will leave you for now, but hope you will stay tuned, or at least drop in from time to time to check up on the haps. Let me know what's going on in your world, too, and send some questions if you have any.
My love to all.
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