Thursday, December 4, 2008
Fun at tonight's performance
Mary Beth brought each of us a pair of funny, refracting 'eyeglasses'. I used mine in front of the camera lens...
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
More Behemoth Weirdness
I'm truly confounded.
Images on right and left were printed with exactly the same instructions. I printed this composite image four times. Prints 1, 3, & 4 looked like the one on the right. Print #2 - inexplicably - is the one on the left. This is a scan of two prints, side by side, on the scanner (and scanned simulateously.)
Images on right and left were printed with exactly the same instructions. I printed this composite image four times. Prints 1, 3, & 4 looked like the one on the right. Print #2 - inexplicably - is the one on the left. This is a scan of two prints, side by side, on the scanner (and scanned simulateously.)
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Friday, November 28, 2008
Guantánamo
Yet another hornet in the nest GWB leaves for Obama and the rest of us to deal with. This is a just-completed full-text search data base of the detainees at Guantánamo.
Of the 779 people who have been detained at Guantánamo, at least 525 have been transferred and approximately 250 remain, according to the U.S. Department of Defense. The Pentagon has declined to release a list of the detainees currently at Guantánamo. By reviewing thousands of pages of government documents, court records and media reports, The Times was able to compile its own approximate list.
http://projects.nytimes.com/guantanamo
Of the 779 people who have been detained at Guantánamo, at least 525 have been transferred and approximately 250 remain, according to the U.S. Department of Defense. The Pentagon has declined to release a list of the detainees currently at Guantánamo. By reviewing thousands of pages of government documents, court records and media reports, The Times was able to compile its own approximate list.
http://projects.nytimes.com/guantanamo
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Tuesday....
Ruth stopped by my studio yesterday to give me the report from the Fire Marshall’s recent visit – and my studio had a small note to remove items stored within 24” of the ceiling. It was referring to the loftspace above my darkroom where I have print boxes and other items. I made a quick review of the situation, and re-arranged the stored items to comply.
Drove out to the carpool lot that Doug had designated as our rendezvous point. We then took his car to the San Bruno BART station and took BART to Civic Center station –and from there walked a mile to our old Turkish restaurant haunt to meet Lance.
The food was even better than it was when IgorA, Doug, Lance and & used to eat here when we all met at Igor’s to play guitar. After the SFBAGC (SF Bay Area Guitar Circle) vanished, Doug & Lance began making the pilgrimage to Igor’s place each week. It was here that the Geary Street Quartet (IgorA, DebraK, Doug & Lance) was born, and later Zesty Enterprise (IgorA, Doug & Lance). When my schedule allowed, I would join them for dinner and some guitar work. After IgorA’s move to Seattle, Doug, Lance and I met at my place. When I left, Doug and Lance faced the dilemma of where to meet. With Doug in La Honda and Lance in north Berkeley and the Bay area’s notorious evening commute, they sought a spot somewhere is the middle with good transit access. They decided they would meet at a BART station and play in the station. And that is what they do. Last night, I joined them. It was remarkable. Though the station is highly resonant, their unamplified guitars do not project far. And for the most part, people pass without giving them much notice. But there were a few commuters who slowed down and lingered through a piece before moving on their way. I’d taken some photos before joining in the play, and it was as I was strapping on my guitar that a fellow slowed down with interest and then leaned against the wall opposite them to listen. They were playing ‘Flying Home’ and when they got to the end of the piece, the fellow came over and said, ’Crafty Guitarists, huh?’ When he asked, ‘Do you guys play anywhere?’ with big grins, Doug and Lance said ‘Here!’ and gestured to their spot in the station.
The beauty of this setup is that you can have a setlist with three pieces since no one stays around long enough to hear anything twice. So when I joined in, we played a lot of Asturias & Growing Circle, with Hope and an extended version of One of A Thousand Regrets. We tried Where it Goes, but since Lance was the only one who knew the whole piece, it kind of fizzled out. No problem – just begin Asturias again! We also circulated and did a group loop. It was great fun.
Packing up after a good gig!
Drove out to the carpool lot that Doug had designated as our rendezvous point. We then took his car to the San Bruno BART station and took BART to Civic Center station –and from there walked a mile to our old Turkish restaurant haunt to meet Lance.
The food was even better than it was when IgorA, Doug, Lance and & used to eat here when we all met at Igor’s to play guitar. After the SFBAGC (SF Bay Area Guitar Circle) vanished, Doug & Lance began making the pilgrimage to Igor’s place each week. It was here that the Geary Street Quartet (IgorA, DebraK, Doug & Lance) was born, and later Zesty Enterprise (IgorA, Doug & Lance). When my schedule allowed, I would join them for dinner and some guitar work. After IgorA’s move to Seattle, Doug, Lance and I met at my place. When I left, Doug and Lance faced the dilemma of where to meet. With Doug in La Honda and Lance in north Berkeley and the Bay area’s notorious evening commute, they sought a spot somewhere is the middle with good transit access. They decided they would meet at a BART station and play in the station. And that is what they do. Last night, I joined them. It was remarkable. Though the station is highly resonant, their unamplified guitars do not project far. And for the most part, people pass without giving them much notice. But there were a few commuters who slowed down and lingered through a piece before moving on their way. I’d taken some photos before joining in the play, and it was as I was strapping on my guitar that a fellow slowed down with interest and then leaned against the wall opposite them to listen. They were playing ‘Flying Home’ and when they got to the end of the piece, the fellow came over and said, ’Crafty Guitarists, huh?’ When he asked, ‘Do you guys play anywhere?’ with big grins, Doug and Lance said ‘Here!’ and gestured to their spot in the station.
The beauty of this setup is that you can have a setlist with three pieces since no one stays around long enough to hear anything twice. So when I joined in, we played a lot of Asturias & Growing Circle, with Hope and an extended version of One of A Thousand Regrets. We tried Where it Goes, but since Lance was the only one who knew the whole piece, it kind of fizzled out. No problem – just begin Asturias again! We also circulated and did a group loop. It was great fun.
Packing up after a good gig!
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
images from Saturday's Salon meeting
Gitta brought her new Lensbaby to the meeting. Robin and Ted work on opening the box together:
Success! Now, how does this damn thing work?
Here's how:
David chats while Robin tries out the Lensbaby.
Brian makes a point.
David examines the G10 he has just bought from a dissatisfied Ted.
Now to look at work!!! Gitta shares a look at her 'test draft' book for the Imagining Then project.
Brian surrounded by mockup pages for his upcoming book.
And we take a moment for Saelon's birthday...
One nervous bird!
Success! Now, how does this damn thing work?
Here's how:
David chats while Robin tries out the Lensbaby.
Brian makes a point.
David examines the G10 he has just bought from a dissatisfied Ted.
Now to look at work!!! Gitta shares a look at her 'test draft' book for the Imagining Then project.
Brian surrounded by mockup pages for his upcoming book.
And we take a moment for Saelon's birthday...
One nervous bird!
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Noticing advertising
The yahoo banner ads that pop up over my inbox every time I refresh it have become a combined source of annoyance and curiosity.
Tiring of the flood of ads for wrinkle-eliminating creams and other age-defying treatments, I decided to try an experiment. I updated my Yahoo profile and listed my gender as male. Sure enough, the age defying creams have mostly disappeared. In their place, however, are ads for babes. Young babes. Babes with come-hither looks. The most annoying are the video imbeds with some giggling, coy, young woman lying on a couch. I'm on the verge of changing my gender again.
Early this morning, an ad popped up offering me a week's worth of Lunestra for free! But nowhere in the ad did it indicate why the hell you'd want to use Lunestra. What does that say about our culture?
(It turns out - I had to look it up - that Lunestra is a sleep aid.)
Tiring of the flood of ads for wrinkle-eliminating creams and other age-defying treatments, I decided to try an experiment. I updated my Yahoo profile and listed my gender as male. Sure enough, the age defying creams have mostly disappeared. In their place, however, are ads for babes. Young babes. Babes with come-hither looks. The most annoying are the video imbeds with some giggling, coy, young woman lying on a couch. I'm on the verge of changing my gender again.
Early this morning, an ad popped up offering me a week's worth of Lunestra for free! But nowhere in the ad did it indicate why the hell you'd want to use Lunestra. What does that say about our culture?
(It turns out - I had to look it up - that Lunestra is a sleep aid.)
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
The saga continues...
An astonishing email from HP that says
"There is nothing we can do to the printer that will change the way it prints these colors."
So I have sent them this pair example, though I don't expect a response until tomorrow as they are in the Mountain time zone.
"There is nothing we can do to the printer that will change the way it prints these colors."
So I have sent them this pair example, though I don't expect a response until tomorrow as they are in the Mountain time zone.
Re-living hell
I just spent the last two days trying to make Behemoth prints for the Palo Alto gallery and pulling my hair out with shifting colors:
So I dug into my notes about the last time I encountered this and found that my new formatter card was delivered with a 2-year old firmware level. Aack! Fortunately, I'd saved the current firmware file and have just completed the (not flawless) upgrade. (I got a 08:11 error that freaked me out because it hinted at PCA hardware failure.) About to make a print and see how it goes....
3PM update: The inconsistency issue is now worse than it was before the firmware upgrade.
So I dug into my notes about the last time I encountered this and found that my new formatter card was delivered with a 2-year old firmware level. Aack! Fortunately, I'd saved the current firmware file and have just completed the (not flawless) upgrade. (I got a 08:11 error that freaked me out because it hinted at PCA hardware failure.) About to make a print and see how it goes....3PM update: The inconsistency issue is now worse than it was before the firmware upgrade.
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
where there is no gift there is no art
Provocative article in the Sunday New York Times magazine about Lewis Hyde. sent me off to learn what I could find of Hyde. It turns out, I have encountered him before (Co-Evolution Quarterly, 1983), but it was so long ago I didn't know that I needed to reflect on these things.
Perusing Hyde's website while I wait my turn in queue at the library, I find this:
"...a work of art can survive without the market, but where there is no gift there is no art"
Perusing Hyde's website while I wait my turn in queue at the library, I find this:
"...a work of art can survive without the market, but where there is no gift there is no art"
Friday, November 14, 2008
Sunday, November 9, 2008
A busy few days...
Today called for a simple breakfast of apple, cheese and tea...
...and then housekeeping. As I launched into drying my laundry, my frustration over the dryer became significant enough to place another call to the landlord on this subject. To my surprise, she jumped on it in a most curious way. Rather than arranging to have the dryer repaired, she went out a bought a brand new washer and dryer! She sent me a cell phone photo of the units that are to be delivered next weekend.
This past Friday was another Behemoth day - that ended with dissapointment. The card that was shipped from the UK turned out to be missing components. The HP tech was as frustrated as I. I have been assured that a new formatter card will be arriving on Monday.
Saturday, I was a part of the support team for Robert's talk at the 'large software company located in Redmond'. I was joined by SteveB, IanB, CurtG and JaxieB. It was a long, intense and satisfying day. Robert's sister Patrica took us out to a late lunch afterwards.
...and then housekeeping. As I launched into drying my laundry, my frustration over the dryer became significant enough to place another call to the landlord on this subject. To my surprise, she jumped on it in a most curious way. Rather than arranging to have the dryer repaired, she went out a bought a brand new washer and dryer! She sent me a cell phone photo of the units that are to be delivered next weekend.
This past Friday was another Behemoth day - that ended with dissapointment. The card that was shipped from the UK turned out to be missing components. The HP tech was as frustrated as I. I have been assured that a new formatter card will be arriving on Monday.
Saturday, I was a part of the support team for Robert's talk at the 'large software company located in Redmond'. I was joined by SteveB, IanB, CurtG and JaxieB. It was a long, intense and satisfying day. Robert's sister Patrica took us out to a late lunch afterwards.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Another rainy day
A very gray and wet day. It isn't even 4pm and it looks like it is evening.
A great show last night. I had a chance to begin making 'performance' images of Ian B who has moved into the performance team.
Just before show time, I walked across the street to the cafe and who should walk in behind me but our special guest from the UK, Robert with his chauffeur SteveB. After hugs and a brief chat, I escorted them back to the performance space. The players were in fine form and even with a brand new and wildly re-arranged setlist, the show was well executed. During the encore ('Mars Effect') Steve and Robert began joyously singing the melody and at one point, where Curt's part involves runs up and down the guitar neck, Robert began to make extravagant 'adoring fan sounds' of awe and wonder. It was great fun.
After the show - with Jax as navigator - I drove Robert back to his hotel. We used the 30-minute drive to Redmond to catch up on a shared research project - and were far from complete when we got there, so we sat in the lobby for an hour more.
Another visit from the HP tech with a formatter card shipped from the UK. This time the card arrived missing two components. The support people who are helping me are even getting cranky about the situation.
A great show last night. I had a chance to begin making 'performance' images of Ian B who has moved into the performance team.
Just before show time, I walked across the street to the cafe and who should walk in behind me but our special guest from the UK, Robert with his chauffeur SteveB. After hugs and a brief chat, I escorted them back to the performance space. The players were in fine form and even with a brand new and wildly re-arranged setlist, the show was well executed. During the encore ('Mars Effect') Steve and Robert began joyously singing the melody and at one point, where Curt's part involves runs up and down the guitar neck, Robert began to make extravagant 'adoring fan sounds' of awe and wonder. It was great fun.After the show - with Jax as navigator - I drove Robert back to his hotel. We used the 30-minute drive to Redmond to catch up on a shared research project - and were far from complete when we got there, so we sat in the lobby for an hour more.
~~~
Another visit from the HP tech with a formatter card shipped from the UK. This time the card arrived missing two components. The support people who are helping me are even getting cranky about the situation.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
A good day indeed.
It is a good day today. Eight years ago, Willie, my feline companion of more than fifteen years, died on election night. I joked at the time that he couldn't face living in George Bush's America. I found it difficult myself.
I was expecting last night to be a long, nail-biting sort of night. I was invited to a 'watch the returns' party at Dean & Patty's last night, but had to arrive late as I had a meeting that went until 9. When I got in my car to drive over, I turned on the radio and found myself listening to Obama's acceptance speech! What happened? Could it really be so decisive an outcome? When I got to the party, they were all very far beyond any nail-biting - and already psychologically settling into the new reality. It took me a little while to catch up.
Photo: Evelyn Hockstein for The New York Times
A New York Time story on the world's reaction to yesterday's election results includes a section on the response in Kismumu where's Obama's father is from.
Most people in Kisumu are Luo, the ethnic group of the top opposition leader and coincidentally the same ethnic group of Mr. Obama’s father. There is an old joke in Kisumu that a Luo will become president of the United States before becoming president of Kenya. It has indeed come true.
I was expecting last night to be a long, nail-biting sort of night. I was invited to a 'watch the returns' party at Dean & Patty's last night, but had to arrive late as I had a meeting that went until 9. When I got in my car to drive over, I turned on the radio and found myself listening to Obama's acceptance speech! What happened? Could it really be so decisive an outcome? When I got to the party, they were all very far beyond any nail-biting - and already psychologically settling into the new reality. It took me a little while to catch up.
Today, there are tear-inducing stories everywhere as we - as a nation - step into this changed place.
Best wishes to Obama and his family.
One of those spontaneous street parties. this one on Valencia in San Francisco:
And this one in Berkeley:
Best wishes to Obama and his family.
One of those spontaneous street parties. this one on Valencia in San Francisco:
And this one in Berkeley:
~~~~
~~~~
Photo: Evelyn Hockstein for The New York TimesA New York Time story on the world's reaction to yesterday's election results includes a section on the response in Kismumu where's Obama's father is from.
Most people in Kisumu are Luo, the ethnic group of the top opposition leader and coincidentally the same ethnic group of Mr. Obama’s father. There is an old joke in Kisumu that a Luo will become president of the United States before becoming president of Kenya. It has indeed come true.
Monday, November 3, 2008
Sparkworks Filming of TTA documentary
Yesterday was a long day at Fremont Abbey. The Sparkworks film crew showed up shortly after we did and together we set up the set and enveloped the space in black cloth. The black cloth was intended to hide the less attractive aspects of FAbbey's lower level and it did a reasonable job. The set-up took more than 3 hours and the next four hours were spent repeating four pieces selected for the filming. During a segment of the filming, MB, AndyB, Meleah and myself were enlisted as faux audience members. When Michel's swooped in with his camera and steadied the lens 10 inches from my face, Curt let out a cheer: 'Payback!' A totally unfair response as I have never gotten that close. (Hell, the lens I use with the team is incapable of focusing that close.) If the day was long and tiring for me, I can only imagine what it was like for the players.
Michel and his team were professional and hard working collaborators. That Michel has agreed to do this pro bono is astonishing. I look forward to seeing the result.
Michel and his team were professional and hard working collaborators. That Michel has agreed to do this pro bono is astonishing. I look forward to seeing the result.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Wet
Drizzly and intermittently wet.
Sitting for five this morning - small for a Saturday. Shortly after nine o'clock, a cell phone erupted with a single burst of synthesized cacophony masquerading as a musical phrase. Later I learned it was my 'new' cellphone receiving an advertising text message from AT&T. What idiot thinks that a text message delivered on Saturday morning is going to influence anyone's choices about cellphone services?
Spent what spare time I had the last few days preparing several portfolios of images for the Facebook account I set up. I confess I expected more arts activity on Facebook - but so far my profile is being swarmed by guitarists - especially since Curt invited me as a friend. He is one popular guy and people I don't even know are wanting to be my 'friend' because I'm now in Curt's list of friends. At least I have to assume this is the reason. And in one case, a fellow who doesn't even like me has sent a friend request. Weird.
The effort to prepare these portfolios was a worthwhile activity. I saw things I haven't seen before about many images - and saw them differently because of the way I was organizing them.
Sitting for five this morning - small for a Saturday. Shortly after nine o'clock, a cell phone erupted with a single burst of synthesized cacophony masquerading as a musical phrase. Later I learned it was my 'new' cellphone receiving an advertising text message from AT&T. What idiot thinks that a text message delivered on Saturday morning is going to influence anyone's choices about cellphone services?Spent what spare time I had the last few days preparing several portfolios of images for the Facebook account I set up. I confess I expected more arts activity on Facebook - but so far my profile is being swarmed by guitarists - especially since Curt invited me as a friend. He is one popular guy and people I don't even know are wanting to be my 'friend' because I'm now in Curt's list of friends. At least I have to assume this is the reason. And in one case, a fellow who doesn't even like me has sent a friend request. Weird.
The effort to prepare these portfolios was a worthwhile activity. I saw things I haven't seen before about many images - and saw them differently because of the way I was organizing them.
