random thought

As I came across this photo (part of the many images Yahoo flashes on my computer screen to try and entice me to click on an ad) and what I thought was this: 'They don't look like a Presidential candidate and his running mate. They look like the hosts of a local news station in a small to medium sized Midwestern city.

Circulating rest notes.

That is the youngest member of the SustainableBallard team helping out at the work party we had on Saturday afternoon. Still working to get my arms fully around this little endeavor which continues to reveal new demands.

Saturday's House Team circle was challenging. One of the circulation exercises we did involved simultaneous clockwise and counter clockwise circulations. Oddly enough, the most difficult part was when CG asked us to pass rest notes. Keeping track of the absence of a note, making sure you were there to accept it, and then turn to hand it off - all in the midst of playing a circulation that was actually headed in the opposite direction of the one you were trying to actively attend to - well, maybe difficult is a mild way to describe it.

music = data + algorithms?!?!?!

This man confuses music and data. His assumption:

music = notes + how they are played

His aim:

music = data + algorithms

a working day

Yesterday was a nose to the grindstone sort of day. SusBallard, TTA and studio business. Wanted to print an image I want to include in the 'dark gardens' series - but I am unable to locate the file. Did I only make that image in my imagination?

In the evening a SusBallard meeting devoted to the 100 mile diet. Guitar practice was back to the primaries and a short investment in the anchor exercise.

Even more raccoon activities

After nearly three weeks without any sign of them, guess who showed up yesterday afternoon? In the midst of an afternoon downpour, I saw them scurry across the kitchen windows. Grabbed my camera just in time to see them scraping at the door and then make a quick getaway.

Guerrilla publicity?

My first ever cellphone photo:


It seems someone is doing guerrilla publicity for Tuning the Air. I walked into Laddro this afternoon to find a color photocopy of the Tuning the Air poster for the upcoming season pinned to he bulletin board. As I am still waiting for the posters to arrive from the printer, I wonder who would take the time and expense to do this? It would be uncharacteristically interventionist behavior for the only likely Laddro patron I can think of. But he has been surprising me of late.

~~~~

A remarkably deep sitting today despite feline activities. Melvin the Terrible was on my blanket even before I sat down. He settled on my lap and cleaned himself for what seemed like more than half of the 45 minutes.

A good Saturday guitar circle of four. The first exercise involved inching up the C major scale, a diatonic step at a time, for three octaves, in an eight note pattern, circulated among the four players. (Whew!) And then turning around whenever you reached the top C. However your 2nd note (8 note pattern among four players meant you played two notes in each pattern) still ascended to C while the first note would descend. Something made this all possible until it wasn't anymore. Like a pinprick in a balloon, I got to a point where my energy and attention went 'poof'.

Then some paired circulations. CG had GM and I circulate two different 5-note patterns. IB and IK circulated two four note pattterns. Eventually there were four different variations with all four of us circulating in pairs. I had a very, very hard time finding a feeling for the five. Got lost a couple of times. Once, I surprised myself by managing to hear where my part belonged in GM's pattern. Another time I found it hard to hear and GM counted me back in. Surprise! I managed to jump in. Twice I got the tiniest glimpse of something else playing besides my thinking.

Carl Stone

The composer Carl Stone was tonight's guest at Good Shepherd Chapel. I managed to drop by during the sound check to make a few images. Went back later for the show - and it was quite a treat to be able to just listen and not have to think about making photos.

Rainy and sunny Thursday

Cool, damp days with intermittent sunshine. Yesterday had a few downpours, one which coincided with my arrival at Jax's for afternoon makeup time on the symmetrical scale work she brought back from her work with RobertF in Spain during the July course. Soggy me settled for an hour of intense work. At the end I realized something about the back pain that turns up during guitar circles. When the whole group met again in the evening to complete the symmetrical scale work, I practiced relaxing my arms from the shoulders so they wouldn't be dead weight on the guitar (which pulls the guitar down and causes my back to hurt.) Much better!
Breakfast of a French sugar pear (courtesy of Saelon) and blackberries picked from the brambles at the end of the block.

A day divided between the Sustain-Ballard gig, Tuning the Air and my own work.
Printing, press releases and planning!

David Griffin

Photo director for National Geographic, David Griffin gives a TedTalk about the power of photography.

"Pink box testing"

I've been pretty daunted by the list of required qualifications for many of the jobs I have been considering. Management positions that required specific knowledge of an extended laundry list of technical tools, in addition to extensive project management experience, just didn't seem reasonable to me and I wondered who applied for these jobs.

While I don't have an answer to that question, I have this datapoint that suggests that lying on resumes might be more common that I'd expected. This fella writes of needing a software tester (back in 1999) and listed in the qualifications "Pink box testing experience". No such thing existed - and yet he received a resume that indicated the candidate had 'pink box testing experience". In this case, it seems the recruiter (not the candidate) had padded the resume before sending it.

Sigh.

Saturday Salon & The 'mystery' newcomer is welcomed

Curt has been making veiled references to the newest arrival in Seattle. On Sunday we had a barbecue welcoming Collin to the team with - of all things - a game of Scrabble!

More Sir?

On Saturday, I was in the Bay Area for an overnight stay for a salonista meeting. Brian was showing off the Burning Man ticket he was considering buying from Robin.

Robin modeled her Burning Man outfit. They are doing a 'wonder bread' theme if you couldn't guess.



Gitta knocked us over by showing all 37 images she has for consideration for her January show in San Francisco. She was hoping for help in editing down to about 24 pieces, but there's very little to edit from this project. Very haunting and powerful.

contradiction

My basement apartment windows offer a view right into my little garden. This morning everything looked very lush.


Last night was my first official event for the SB contract. Many things went well. A few did not.
Learned many useful lessons. Onward!

It is a great crowd of people. Good natured, friendly and helpful.




The TTA press kit is 'done' - now I've sent it out for feedback. Leaning on several people for favors in this regard. But it is really important that people who are unfamiliar with the project take a look at this. I am too close to the subject to be able to evaluate whether we have adequately explained what this is all about.

It is an interesting contradiction. When I was back in the Bay Area, I felt I needed to learn more about this project to write about it - and that is certainly true. But it turns out to be a hindrance as well. Re-reading the old press kit makes that painfully evident. So much is taken for granted.

In honor of Isaac Hayes

The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain presents 'Shaft'.






And if you enjoyed that, try this one...

One of the things that distinguishes Seattle

I'm at the cafe to catch up on reading and writing. Across from me sits a fellow, laptop spread out before him as mine is before me. His cell phone rings. He answers it, gets up and steps out of the cafe to take the call. He doesn't even glance back at the computer he's leaving behind unattended. And that isn't unusual behavior in the least. One day a few months back, a woman who had been sitting across me stepped away. Forty-five minutes later, I pointed the abandoned laptop out to the barista. A few minutes later the woman came back in. She'd gone out to make a call and got so engrossed in the conversation, she lost track of time and her possessions.
~~~~

Excellent house circle yesterday. Two disarmingly simply exercises. The first began with us all droning an open A. Then CG told us to continue the drone with any note in C Major. Each of us made our way to a note. This was followed by adjustments - either by impulse or wanting to improve the harmony of the resulting chord we were making. Then CG asked us to listen to and 'follow' the notes GM playesd. After a minute or two, then we were to follow the lead of IK, then myself, etc. around the circle. In this way, each of us 'led' the shared musical impulse.

The second exercise began with MB and I circulating a triad of notes CG gave us. IB, IK, and GM were given a different triad to circulate among themselves. These two circulations were then combined. For the remainder of the time, CG kept adding variations and it got richer and richer. For myself, it was a fingering challenge. (Is that arthritis creeping up on me???)

___

In the evening, Jaxie & Bob, TM, CG and I went to the Fiddler's Inn for dinner. We were all impressed with the guitarist who was playing guitar and singing for this raucous pub clientele. There was some debate at the table about the guitarists age. His repertoire included Bod Dylan, Cole Porter, Johnny Cash, the Beatles, etc., and he was really quite good. As we were leaving, I decided to settle the debate and stepped up to ask him his age. 23! Yow! I hope he keeps at it. Afterwards, headed back to Travis' to watch The Good Shepherd. A great film with limited violent content - at least compared to watch we usually watch over there.

~~~~

Today is a quiet catch-up day from a full week of activity.

Crown Hill

Since morning sittings at Curt's have been discontinued though August, I've not been walking up Phinney Ridge. And I now realize why I prefer Phinney Ridge to my own neighborhood. It is the hills. Not only do the hills provide an opportunity to get my heart rate going, but they also mean the yards are structured differently on Phinney Ridge. Not as many lawns, since people are gardening in mostly terrace fashion. And that also brings more of the plants to the yard's edge. In Crown Hill (to the north of me) and Ballard (to the south), there are more lawns. And the flowering plants tend to be huddled next to the houses. And since I have a rule that I can't trespass to get my images, I have less material available to me here than on Phinney Ridge.


Awhile back, in order to learn how it worked, I set up Google Analytics on this weblog. And suddenly I noticed a regular reader - and I mean nearly daily - pop up on Vashon Island. I don't know anyone who lives on Vashon Island. Not long ago, the hits from Vashon Island stopped and I began to get hits from Seahurst. I don't know anyone who lives in Seahurst. Why anyone (beyond my friends) would be interested in reading these ramblings is a mystery to me

Harry Chapin - Taxi

I love that the high, background vocal on this is sung by the bass player.

Ballard Locks

Wolfe is visiting Seattle for a family reunion and dropped by for lunch today. After lunch, he decided that he wanted to visit the Ballard locks. So we did.

Despite the overcast skies you see here, it is really quite warm in Seattle right now.

~~~

The day is a mix of TTA press/graphics work and SusBallard activities. The guitar circle tonight that was to have been led by Jaxie has been canceled since she and the girls are delayed on the San Juans by a series of out-of-service ferries.

~~~
Barring unexpected edits, this is the final poster design for the fall season of Tuning the Air.

Day 2

Well I am not as efficient as I'd like to be at this new gig . . . yet!

I'm reminded of when I volunteered for J. Brown's radio show - how I entered a new world where a different set of rules applied. For the first week or two it astounded me that all I had to do to get a book for free was to call the publisher, identify myself as an assistant producer of the show, let them know what I needed, and a week later the book would be in my mailbox. Wild! I never abused this perk, though I began to understand how the show's producer survived without ever getting paid. (He was authorized to take all funds that came in from sales of the archive tapes of the show which no doubt helped a bit.)

And once again, I find myself in a strange alternative economy. It is wonderful to be reminded of this and good experience. This morning, I began by scripting out what I would say to the various places I needed to call. After a few attempts at the script, I just decided to dive in - and that taught me a lot - so I opted to learn by doing. Fortunately there were no mishaps.

Day one

First official day on the job, and there I am smack dab in the middle of the home page for Sustainable Ballard.

Missing Keys

found on Phinney Ridge...

Saturday, August 2, 2008

from today's work

A paying gig, gallery visits and my old friend the raccoon

I don't know what I'll do when they become fully grown.

~~~

The good news: A paying gig. The less than good news. It is only a two month contract for about a dozen hours a week for a job that is a few weeks behind (the previous person who had this gig had to quit for health reasons) and doesn't pay tremendously well. So though I'm very glad to be able to do it, it means the job search doesn't let up either. So I have a job and am still looking for one.

Tucked my portfolio under my arm and finally visited two Seattle galleries. At one I got a very good response and an openness to helping me find the right representation. At the other, well, here's how I wrote about the other gallery visit in my journal:

Afterwards, I headed to the other gallery. I’d been to this one before and had been brushed off with the canned reply to give her my website and she’ll call me if she sees anything interesting. I watched my webstatistics for a few weeks after that encounter and registered no State of Washington views of my website. Today, I arrived with the sample print pamphlet I’d carefully prepared on the Behemoth. I walked in, chatted with the gallery rep (the owner was not there.) After talking a bit about the work on the walls, I said I’d like some advice. I explained I was new to Seattle. That I had a body of work – work that has sold very well in the Bay Area and also in Houston, primarily in health care settings - and I was hoping to find a local representative for this work. Would she be able to recommend someone? I handed her the sleeved portfolio with the sample print pamphlet in it. She did the most magnificent job of taking the thin portfolio from my hand without accepting it. As disappointed as I was by this gesture, I had to admire it. She managed to entirely avoid even glancing at the image prominent on the cover. Despite this careful obstruction she built, I persisted. She said something about not knowing anything about commercial dealers. I said I was sorry if I gave the impression this was commercial work, because it was not. She softened ever so slightly. Acknowledged she’d misunderstood me. And while she returned my portfolio, she gave me a brief explanation of how these sorts of purchases are made in Seattle (very different than the Bay Area.) She made a few suggestions (nothing new) but then gave me the name of the curator at a major local medical center. And then – and still clearly retaining the distance she established at the outset - she welcomed me to Seattle. I thanked her and left. As difficult as that exchange was, it was probably the best outcome I could have hoped for. I now have a name to send a mailing to.

Along with all this I find myself in the busiest time for TTA publicity/graphics/photography activities - while everyone else is 'on break'. Makes for a challenging time.

My (now favorite) Phinney Ridge plant:

I photograph it every chance I get.