- 18:29 Waiting for Avatar... 3D... IMAX #
- 23:22 @euromandy I think now we want to see 2d regular to compare #
- 01:25 Rooting for little or no precip and unseasonably warm temps for the next 24 hours. #
An unrehearsed and largely unedited exercise in free speech - or just a way to foist my tiny little life and unsubstantiated opinions upon the world.
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It's been a little while since we've had some random images. The semester ended, we had crits, we've been back and forth to New York for a family holiday. Lot's of pictures piling up.
I got through all my grading, adding one more cashed red pen to the collection. I think this is becoming a sort of work of art of its own...
Crits came and went. I can't imagine doing it now like we used to do it before, we'd keel over for sure. This year we had our first video crit content - or at least the most significant video crit content to date. People had had projectors for thesis presentations, and there have been a/v portions of semester reviews before, but this sort of was a milestone. Not sure if it's a thumbs up or down though...
Amidst the semester review hoolpa they snuck in and delivered our laser cutter/engraver. I'm sure Louis hasn't worked 10 minutes since. All things being equal I'm not sure what it's for, but I am sure we'll figure something out...
My dad may have gone a little overboard with the catalogs. Still, we appreciate it...
Here we are shopping for a gift for Easton. Are fireworks not appropriate for 6-9 months? I can never remember...
(this was a MMS to my sister: "Shopping for Easton!")
When we got to NYC we spent the afternoon at MOMA. Get the timed tickets online for the Burton exhibit, there's a line for the line...
Our day in the city wound up with dinner at W D 50. More on that later...
Family holiday with my family and my sister's in-laws at Jessica's common law residence in Briarcliff. Really she should check the squatting regs, she might actually own the place...
In a photo I title "Too Soon" this is the grocery store back in Pittsburgh on the day after Christmas...
I'll give them a tiny little credit though. I cropped out a meager New Years card display.
We had snow and then a thaw. Here's something the Gutter Shutter salesman doesn't tell you about when they give you the hard sell...
"um, you might wind up with large shards of ice from time to time - nothing to worry about."
Turns out there were even more boxes from my dad. I don't know what he was thinking. This is like offering a drink to an alcoholic...
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200 hits to go to 100,000. Maybe 100,000 hits is a good time to retire a personal blog... Another New York trip, another GPS disappointment. Could it be that the Magellan people just don't want us to go to NYC... We got the "Something Something Something Darkside" DVD. I recommend it... Still a little jumpy after the car accident... I had an idea for a Branson show, but after looking into it *really* briefly it may be that it isn't enough of a show to be a show... No iPhone trouble for us in the city... Contemplating a complete email embargo during early January. Not sure if I can do it anymore... My bathroom repair isn't turning out as well as it could. I think I am going to have to do it again... Today it seems like the Steelers aren't totally out of it (although tomorrow when we hear about all the tie breakers it might be less shiny-happy)... In general I think I got better gifts this year than I gave; something to work on for 2010... Looking forward to MLE on the Kennedy Center Honors. I hope she doesn't get editted out... Haven't seen Avatar yet, just looking for a good time. Read an interesting article about the whole genre - check the sidebar... We're waiting axiously to find out is our car is totalled. Not sure which way works out better for us in the end. Really just wishing it hadn't happened at all... There's a part of me that thinks whatever awful compromise comes out of Congress for Health Insurance reform the President ought to veto it and tell them we're not going to tolerate business as usual any longer and they should craft a real solution instead of a passable sausage...
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Labels: Ellipses
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James "Mac" McCammond, Chicago Equity Actor Who Joined IATSE, Dies at 50 - Playbill.com: "James 'Mac' McCammond, a Chicago-area actor who shifted to backstage crew work, died Dec. 22 in Chicago after an 18-month battle with non-Hodgkins lymphoma, according to friends and colleagues. He was 50."
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Here's what it looks like when you don't see the other guy coming:
There was none of that "everything slows down" - it was over in an instant, before I realized what was happening it was over. It looked *exactly* like it would on one of those NASCAR in car cameras.
Aside from probably two totaled cars everyone is fine.
A short list of things I am thankful for:
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We've had a one year hiatus, but now the shoe competition is back. I decided this time that I would hold back the photos until the end for one big post - so here it is.
Unfortunately I left the index of who's feet each shoe is on back in my office at work, so for the time being we vote without names. All in all its probably more shoe-centric that way anyway. If you recognize the wearer you can always put it in the comments.
And so, without further delay, here are this years competitors:
Posted by David at 11:27 PM 1 comments
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And now we arrive at the final day. I have to say, I think if we had to do these the old way we'd fall over dead. The new way is so much easier and we're still tapped out.
Tuesday Morning
We begin with Senior TD Naomi...
... who still doesn't know what the whole 452 thing is about.
Next is Junior LD/PM Joe...
... who has likely chosen the most paperwork intensive career combination.
Then we have newly minted PM/SM Brooke...
...very color coordinated.
And then we have Junior PM/SM Elize...
... she had a very productive semester of knitting.
The morning closes up with newly minted TD Ethan...
... who apparently thought the photo was a "how not to be seen" exercise.
Tuesday afternoon
The final session begins with newly minted TD/SM Katherine...
... the first to blaze that trail under the new regime.
The last PTM crit photo of the semester goes to Senior PM/SM Chapel...
... who woulda had a better board, but her car got broken into.
Posted by David at 6:33 PM 0 comments
Labels: Work
This is more of a squeak...
FANTASY OR REALITY WEEK 14 MATCHUP BOX SCORE
Make Room For Ducklings Canarsie Chiefs
PLAYER PTS PLAYER PTS
Ben Roethlisberger 9 David Garrard 7
Mike Bell 0 Steven Jackson 4
Julius Jones 3 Fred Jackson 11
Steve Smith 7 Kevin Smith 7
Reggie Wayne 4 Larry Fitzgerald 2
Derrick Mason 15 Marques Colston 11
Antonio Gates 10 Heath Miller 5
Vikings D/ST 7 Saints D/ST 2
Matt Prater 3 Nate Kaeding 8
TOTALS : 58 TOTALS : 57
Posted by David at 10:35 AM 0 comments
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Back from the weekend and more Semester reviewing to do.
Monday - morning session.
We begin with newly minted TD Charley...
...The world does need more Muppet wrestlers.
Next up, newly minted PM/SM David...
... I believe that Muppet would kick the wrestler Muppet's butt (if they have butts).
Moving on to TD/LD Matt...
... who has been searching for an ethically flexible image host.
Monday afternoon session.
We kick off with the PTM Classroom's resident PM/SM Nicole...
... who apparently overcame a predisposition to hate all things TD.
And then newly minted PM/SM Chris...
... with the Muppet labeled "Bad Motherfucker" (ok, really it wasn't).
And we complete the day with newly minted TD Jacob...
... nice that someone still dresses up the day.
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Labels: Work
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We interrupt the crits photos to bring you a project from the Technical Direction III class.
A few years ago I was reading this book: The Year's Best Science Fiction: Ninth Annual Collection. There's a story in it called Desert Rain which particularly caught my attention. The top of this story involves an artist constructing a kinetic sculpture meant to reproduce the sound of a rainstorm:
Teresa looked up at the framework of welded steel tubing. It stood nine feet tall and just over six feet on a side. Within the framework, steel tracks snaked above and below one another in seemingly random patterns, forming a gleaming tangle. At regular intervals along the tracks, lines of one inch ball bearings waited to be released. Teresa pulled the string that dangled from the chute at the top of the sculpture, and closed her eyes to listen.
With the faint whisper of metal scraping against metal, a gate opened and freed the first ball, which rattled along the grooved surface of the track. As the ball rounded the first curve, it struck a trip wire and released two more balls. Each of these in turn freed more balls, until dozens were rolling down the tracks with a sound like faraway thunder.
The music started slowly, building as the balls rumbled down the tracks. The first ball struck a series of tuning forks, and three high notes rang out. Another ball rattled across a section of metal reeds, then clattered through a maze of gates. Every ball followed a different path: ringing bells, striking chimes and bouncing off tuning forks.
When the first ball reached the gathering basket, the sound began to lessen. As others followed the first, the sound faded entirely.
With her eyes still shut, Teresa shook her head. The music was not right; it was not even close. She wasn't sure anymore exactly how the composition should sound, but she knew this was not it. The piece sounded too mechanical, too predictable. In her proposal, she had promised the Santa Fe Arts Commission a sculpture that conveyed the essence of water, the rush and flow of it - a waterless fountain for a desert town. She wanted music that would remind people of rain drumming on a tin roof or the roar of a breaking wave. Instead, she had the hum of trucks on the freeway.
Posted by David at 11:14 PM 0 comments
Labels: Work
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On to day two and the undergrad jumble.
Morning session.
We begin with newly minted PM/SM Liz...
Continue with Senior PM/SM Alana...
... who is quite certainly ready to fall in.
On to newly minted PM/SM Hannah...
and then Senior TD Bryan...
... who is going to try to draw relevant things, not just cool ones.
Round out the morning with Senior PM/Scene Designer Candace...
... who seems to have decided film and TV will be her route.
Afternoon session.
Just one person from PTM in the afternoon, junior PM/SM Kevin...
... rocking the Jude Law "Sherlock Holmes" look.
More Monday.
Posted by David at 7:25 PM 0 comments
Labels: Work
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So it is semester review time again. In the fall we do the first day as an "all grad day" because it restores some group adhesion that the scramble crits inherently defeats (it's amazing to me how different the process is from when I started). Since we're capped at 15 people/session these days by geography, and at the moment we have more than 30 grads (outstanding) we had to do three sessions Thursday.
Session One.
First up this time around is Grad 2 TD Sam...
... he had a full semester, but we didn't really turn it on. We'll try to agitate him more in the Spring.
Next up is Grad 2 PM/SM Cody...
... he got one of those "Not Insane" stamps like Homer got on the Simpsons. Must be nice to be sure.
Middle Session
First in the middle session is Grad 1 PM/SM Calvin...
... who got to do a show via Twitter this semester.
Next is Grad 1 PM/SM Devorah...
... who got more than her fill of Kevin class.
And then Grad 1 TD Tom Strong...
... who is finding a house is just like a boat* except it doesn't go anywhere.
Afternoon session
Session three begins with Grad 2 PM/SM Danielle...
... who set personal records for hours spent in the building.
Next is Grad 2 TD Jimmy...
... whose feedback nearly sent me to the hospital.
And then lastly Grad 1 PM/SM Brian...
... bringing order to his crit through architecture.
There were shoes. I'll do a round up at the end.
* a boat being a hole in the water where you throw your money. Did you know that BOAT stands for "Bust out another thousand"?
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Labels: Work
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FANTASY OR REALITY WEEK 13 MATCHUP BOX SCORE
Make Room For Ducklings Farrell Kats Farrell
PLAYER PTS PLAYER PTS
Jay Cutler 9 Tom Brady 18
Mike Bell 3 LaDainian Tomlinson 14
Jamal Lewis 0 Pierre Thomas 7
Steve Smith 11 Cadillac Williams 10
Reggie Wayne 4 Roddy White 16
Derrick Mason 1 Wes Welker 16
Antonio Gates 16 Spencer Havner 0
Vikings D/ST -2 Giants D/ST 9
Matt Prater 15 Neil Rackers 12
TOTALS : 57 TOTALS : 102
Posted by David at 1:28 PM 0 comments
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I guess one of the few things that continues to fuel the blog is that I now have a decent camera on my phone. Here's some pics that have been accumulating:
Mrs TABNI did a gig a few weeks back where she did some "seasonal" lighting for a mall downtown
They are very careful here in Pittsburgh to not say "Christmas" season, in fact, the shopping kick off is called "sparkle season."
Here's a picture of my Dad and me from Thanksgiving at my in-laws...
We were really happy he was able to make it. He's got a couple of broken ribs and cracked vertebrae from a fall (and I think from being older). The doctors have him in that Darth Vader rig to try to allow the wounds to heal. To talk to him it seems like he'd rather do without it. Should be done with it in like four weeks. Fingers crossed.
After the holiday we went to a Pacers game. I've now seen the Dallas Mavericks live more than any other NBA team. I'm not sure how that happened. Here's a banner in the lobby at Indy:
It's a nice building. Here's a shot of the floor:
The Pacers lost impressively.
When we got back, my Technical Direction III class helped out on a project for the Studio for Creative Inquiry...
The guy with the camera is doing a proof of concept video for an art project he's talking about. I sounds like he wants to suspend someone from the back of a truck. Guess we'll see on down the line. My kids did a great job.
Last Technical Direction I class:
I felt compelled to write that on the board as I anticipated swearing, talking about sex, some poor opinions about collaboration, some questionable business practices and other things generally required from a career in the business. Years ago the teaching center observed me and told me such things might make students uncomfortable. Of course, they would probably also say forcing a student to elect to leave is also stigmatizing. If I were allowed to say "Damned if you do, damned if you don't" I would.
Over the last month I read in several peoples tweets and status updates that they were waiting hours for H1N1 vaccinations.
I waited 9 minutes.
This is my cat Freya:
She was really close to the lens in a fairly dark room. Studies tell us that camera phones were specifically designed for the photographing of cats, so there you go (also, in hindsite this photo may be sideways).
The 09-10 Schemewear came in today:
That's multiple shoe-contest winner Alana finally feeling like part of the "Boys and Naomi Club." She doesn't actually start her Scheme assignment for several months, but I like to include everyone. We did coveralls this year. The vests were feeling kinda done and I think these are cooler. Not sure we'll go again though as sizing becomes a significant issue with this garment. I didn't want them to know what we were getting so I got some help from the costume production people to guess sizes. It came out alright, but could have been better (and I have to do one supplemental order for someone that was taller than we thought). I'll try to get better pics a little later on.
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