nostatic at all...

More audio work, but I bagged the wholesale change as it is a nightmare to try and piece together someone else's mix from the raw files (when they are mixed/not matched/not labeled). Two choices, orchestral and modern, no waiting. Well, except for the waiting for the rendering. Geez, I thought the Sorensen 3 codec was slow, but the h.264 is even worse. At least I get a 50MB file instead of 500MB. Technology...

Keeping in the video theme (some clips from live Simpleflower gigs coming soon), perhaps my favorite tv commercial of all time. Pure art. Direction and editing is just spot on...

Amazing what you find when you start throwing crap out. Not sure when this was written, but my guess is 2 years ago plus or minus. I think I write better stuff now, but it is what it was...

red lights passed and ignored
eventually they catch up
the price is high and climbing
enough tears to fill your cup

start what yo finish
how many times now
start what you finish
the question is how?

it wasn't meant to play out like this
it wasn't meant to play at all
innocence lost so very long ago
trying to climb back after the fall

start what you finish
some time to breathe
start what you finish
nothing up my sleeve

no choices quickly turn into many
being pulled three ways at one time
deiciding on which connection to cut
without killing all the lines

one way streets hurt the most
never going back to before
turn back time, walk back rhymes

start what you finish
living for someone else
start what you finish
stuck in any number of hells

As promised, some video from the not-so-but-seems-like-forever-past...

Switch bass, and slap the Flowers and Pain away...

i wonder, i wander, i forgot. tomorrow never knows. but today does. and tomorrow will be today soon enough. so maybe then the wander won't wonder.

Geez, could this take any longer? Have a 2Gig movie file that I need to compress for web delivery...being screened tomorrow morning in DC. Of course the editor couldn't give me what I ask for (ie a QT output in 640x480) so I can quickly do what I need. No, I get the DV file (but not all the associated data which actually would have been useful as the music is mixed too low). So now it is hurry up and wait...and stay up late because this has to be recompressed, converted to windoze media (heathens) and put up on the site so it can be accessed tomorrow AM EST. Fun. It's a party. A compression party. And no one is invited...

Rendering 'till 2am. Lousy sleep. Call in sane. Familiar with the couch. Dozing some. Not much food. Change of schedule. My head hurts.

I wasn't crazy about the song when it first came out, but it is the soundtrack to one of my all time favorite commercials, and upon listening again, it is quite a great tune...

Sun is shinin' in the sky
There ain't a cloud in sight
It's stopped rainin' ev'rybody's in a play
And don't you know
It's a beautiful new day hey,hey

I wish I'd seen Ben Folds Five when they were together. Theme from Dr. Pyser would have been worth the price of admission. And here's a plaintive one...

What I've kept with me
And what I've thrown away
Dont know where the hell I've ended up
On this glary, random day
Were the things I really cared about
Just left along the way
For being to pent up and proud

this will be
whatever flies free
from an open heart
and a damp face

this will be
whoever can see
the real me inside
take a peek

open quickly with pressed slacks
and squeaking shoes tied
too tight but maybe too much
up front as wednesday
will never come

this will be
wherever we flee
sent reeling by words
sitting is hard

this will be
however i'll see
it through to the end
to the other side

a two day window, a lucky strike
the second was the one that stuck
and plucked from the stack
dictating reams and filling in
a backstory that can't win

see the lights from the city
knowing it might fall to pity
heart beating like a bass drum
but wednesday will never come

fogbound and grounded
strictly on instruments for now
couldn't stand the weather
turn around and go back home
not the first to roam

driving the hills the slow turns
may be gone but the fire still burns
my heart feeling a little numb
but wednesday will never come

yell now, stomp your feet
the trees are bending
an offering, a message
to take it all in, receive it
and give it all back

sun breaking through
mist falls away
i've quit screaming
and tilting at windmills
turn around give it back

shrubs in fine rows
doors that never really close
in my mind strike a pose

boplicity reigns supreme
a love so true
green in blue
pounding on the skin
no double reed this time

walk calm but firm
release the grip
hold on gently
bare feet on the coals
but nothing burns

lines crossing the marsh
birds taking easy flight
leaving all that is harsh

First event of '07, before flatspotting tires on the last run session.

Sometimes it is hard to get a shot because of movement. Timing is everything. Luck is a big part. So is patience.

i love the green in this...

Independent consultant. OK. Technical advisory board member with travel expenses to China. Check. Local advisory board member. Yes. Sub-contractor. Affirmative.

I love this country...

OK...so I Tivo Iron Chef. And Iron Chef America. And use to watch Good Eats religiously. And have been known to also sneak a peak at other Food Network offerings. Does that make me a foodie? Or is it that I actually know a little bit about what I eat? Hmm, not sure. But I suppose I can be a foodie without also being a metrosexual. Because that just isn't the case...no, really. I swear...

he sold me out
i was just looking
for a place to rest
go back inside
although i'm tired of staying
in slanting shadows and gazing
longingly at those turned inside out

he sold me out
i didn't ask for much
just that he hold his tongue
cover my ears
pretend not to hear
but he spread it like manure
acrid and sticky in the heat

he sold me out
tried to let it go
but it comes back in a dream
barbed at the tip
special knots that make
mobius green with envy
and setting aside the black

it's not about me. it's not about me. it's not about me.

if I only had the ruby shoes to click...

Another class, another really tired knee at the end of it. It's slowly getting there (was on the stationary bike for a bit before class), but is also frustrating. Still can't really do kicks hard, but was able to run form 1 (and remembered it). Finished form 3, but it is waaaay fuzzy. Slow and steady...

You'd think with stoopid amounts of education I'd be able to read signs, but evidently I still miss from time to time. Mea culpa. Hey, better late than never...

Found out today that a former colleague died over the weekend. Charles ran the Entertainment Technology Center at USC starting in 2002, and they "lived" in our building at ACC. As a result we interacted quite a bit, and we collaborated on a number of various projects. He was a very bright guy who had done the industry thing, and came to USC to almost singlehandedly create the digital cinema lab in Hollywood. I got email from him in late summer saying he'd retired and was undergoing treatment for a brain tumor at UCLA. I emailed him back asking if he needed anything, and in typical low-key Charles fashion, got back to me thanking me for the offer but said things were going ok. That was the last I heard from him. I wish I'd followed up.

god speed Charles. And to the rest of you...life is short. Don't put off until tomorrow what you could do today.

The price of punditry I suppose. I thought '06 had lots of travel, but turns out that was just a warm up. On tap for Feb is DC, Mar will see Vancouver and Houston, April is Singapore/Malaysia and probably DC again, May is China and now NY added to the mix. Hmm, wonder what June will bring?

arise! awake! but be still
and feel the lonely beat
lub dub lub dub
counting on the out
and trying not to crawl
out of your own skin

hear a step
open an eye
take a breath
stare the demon down

burning both sides
of a wax philosophic
drip drip drip
stinging puddles fly
and harden hearts
with silly sayings

see the past
feel the present
give the future
take the demon down

countdown barking loud
buzzing with excitement
tick tock
now's the time
hit the high c
and leave it be

sound the alarm
turn that down
cut me up
run the demon down

Funny how age can bring wisdom, if you're willing to listen. Been trying a new strategy the past year or two. Historically when I'd start feeling run down or like I was coming down with something, I'd just plow ahead and ignore it. After all...I'm busy and have stuff to do. I can remember being in the lab while sneezing ahd wheezing (turns out that keeping sterile conditions is a little tough that way), and lecturing with a sore throat, sweating with fever, etc.

only love can set you free
i was wrong when i wrote that song
twenty some odd years ago
it seems like five lifetimes
since i walked in the rain
and felt it running down my face
i wish i could dance

on patrol in the desert
i got the letter and saw the tape
made it all so very clear
but still held out hope
having to dig in and dig out
a few months pass by
i wish i could dance

rounding out the shattered nights
blocking out the neon lights
and sounds of the city pounding
my head like a heavy bag
stood there and took it
dished out all by myself
i wish i could dance

they don't come around much
although a change was in the wind
sorry i couldn't say more
but i'm tattered and torn
had finally edged forward
and slipped before i fell
i wish i could dance

Despite the attempted R&R, the bug seems to be winning. The tickle slowly turning into a cough, the drip turning into sneezes. Why now? Because, that's why. Back to the couch...

Streak of warm weather in the southland. For some reason reminded me of a Stevie Ray Vaughn song. I've always had some issues with SRV, but a few tunes are just spot on. Songs like Life by the Drop (talking about his fight with alcoholism), Crossfire, and the one that popped into my head today, Couldn't Stand the Weather. Funny how just after he got his life on track a freak accident took him away. There's a message or three in there...

The advil. It no work. My head it still hurts. Will Peet's fix it? Doubtful, but ever the empiricist, I shall do the experiment. This bug sucks...gonna be a long week.

OK...I don't get this. Ad for a prescription sleep aid lists "drowsiness" as a side effect. Umm, isn't that the whole point of the med?!?!?

This bug officially sucks. Or blows. Or both. At least my edits went fairly smooth (knock on wood...rendering now), although now I need to make a self-playing compilation sampler disc. I really just want to sleep. For a week. Or three. Then go on vacation. For a week. Or three. Then repeat.

A day early (according to my calendar...evidently I missed an email), but today was spent first on the couch, then virtually (phone) on the couch, then in scramble mode when at 2:15pm my cell phone rang and the other end asked, "where are you?!?"

So it was off to meeting with people unnamed, a hurried call to the sitter (horray for Priya), then duck out to pick up the boy (and a teary-eyed call from him as I was supposed to pick him up earlier, but couldn't), head back to the apartment to meet the sitter, give her money to buy dinner (they got Thai), and back to the fun. Then home late, nyquil, and bed. Uggh. Tomorrow is Long Beach, more fun, then hopefully more sleep.

Boo!

I'm an expert. At what exactly I'm not sure, but turns out I know stuff about...stuff. The morning was schmoozing with suits at the California Office of Homeland Security conference...yes, we need lots of your money. In reality, we do, as we actually do know about training, and god knows that emergency responders, especially incident command, need *good* training tools. And command and control as well. New projects.

Then a run north on the freeway for another day of fun. Wish I could talk about it but then I'd have to kill everyone on the internet. And I don't have enough ammo for that. Suffice it to say that it is important, fascinating, and as usual I volunteered for too much stuff. Visualization - your key to understand that which is often opaque.

Today as part of our background material we watched United 93. I didn't see it in the theaters (most people didn't, but I also don't get out to see many movies first run), but better late than never. Amazing film. Stunning direction and cinemtography. Just about perfect approach to the subject matter. I maybe would have showed a bit less of the passengers phoning home, but small quibble. The ATC footage was riveting. And many of the people were not actors, but rather the actual people who were in the towers and centers. At times you could tell (somewhat wooden reactions), but it didn't matter. The pace, the handheld shots, the lighting, the understated score...it all just worked. It wasn't pleasant, but rather gut wrenching. But important. A reminder of why the stuff we're working on is important.

Was talking with a colleague today about the bug going around and he said he had it for about 2 weeks, finally going on antibiotics to get rid of the bacterial respiratory infection. As my plegm is already turning colors (my bellweather for bacterial infection), I called my doc's office to see about coming in on Friday. The nurse asked me my symptoms, then said, "we'll call in a prescription." Efficient. Guess it is pretty prevalent right now. So a trip to CVS and now I'm taking ultracef and some other horse pill. Fun. But if it clears this up (including the annoying swollen lymph node and funny little rash), I'll be a perfectly happy camper. Now if only I could sleep for about 5 days solid...

Woke at 5am, had trouble getting back to sleep, finally did around 6 (my usual m.o.), then at 7 the damn alarm is on tap. Why are my prime sleep hours from 6-9am? And boy, this bug blows. All sorts of parts of me falling apart. I need some sleep. But no rest for the wicked, instead conference calls, meetings, more meetings, then signing away the house. But at least that will lead to cash and that's a good thing. And sleep. That's mostly what I want. Sweet, sweet sleep. Oh yeah, and for all my symptoms to clear up. In time I suppose...

OK, so when I check the box on the Orbitz site that says, "only show refundable flights," then I should have a reasonable expectation that the flights I get are refundable, right? Well evidently not. Bastards. Bought an economy class ticket but thought better of it (20 hours in a plane) and decided to upgrade to business. Well, can't do an upgrade, have to refund and buy another ticket. OK. So I cancel the ticket. Minus the change fees. Grrr, OK. Then something about having to call to exchange the paper ticket (old school). So I call and it turns out that the ticket is non-refundable, and that I can use it for credit. OK, I want to book the same flights just business class. Sorry sir, we can't do that, we can only exchange for another economy flight. You'll have to go to the ticket counter. Wait, this is BS, the ticket should be refundable, so you should refund my credit card, then I can book the business class flight. No, we can't do that. OK, I want to talk to a supervisor. Great, please hold...

still holding. bastards.

They say every moment is a fresh start. It can be tricky to determine that from moment to moment, what exactly is fresh, and where the changes occur. I guess that's one reason we tend to mark things in years...birthdays, new years (US and Chinese), anniversaries, etc. And often the odd events end up prompting the "what was last year like?" But maybe the more important question is, "what is today like?"

Back in the day (early 80's) there was a club in San Diego called The Box Office. This was a strip club that decided that they wanted to branch out into rock and roll. My band was called "Nasty Habits" during these days, taken from the first line of the Rolling Stones song, "Live With Me" which used to open all our shows. The club actually had decent sound, and we did some recordings that turned out pretty good. Here's a Hendrix tune from 1981:

In lieu of my own words on the topic (maybe tonight), a chorus from Tom...

The waiting is the hardest part
Every day you see one more card
You take it on faith, you take it to the heart
The waiting is the hardest part

and high tides forever. A classic rock staple (especially for djs who needed a bathroom break...8 minute tracks are good for that), it came across the radio today and I was reminded of the various bits that move me. I'm not sure that anyone will every quite understand what I hear in it...and that's...ok (thanks Stuart). I suppose I can try and explain it, and fall into that dream visual/situation I had so long ago of me walking backwards talking to someone saying, "you just don't understand!" Then again, maybe I don't understand. Or maybe I focus too much on understanding in general, and should rather just feel it. So I did. And here's the lyrics. Funny because I never really knew them, although I've played and sang the song live many times. But other than a word here or a word there, never quite knew what he was singing...I just faked it. Well, here's what he was singing:

a little stick, it doesn't sting
but makes you wonder
and take the referral
closing from both sides
probably nothing
don't think it's anything
probably nothing

spin at six, turn at seven
shouldn't have ate
that first or second course
supposed to be low
probably nothing
not really anthing
probably nothing

ask the question
believe the answer
take the test
and hope you pass
probably nothing
don't think anything
probably nothing

Geez, if only. If only I was at a major studio. If only I was running a show and/or game title. If only that were the case, today's brainstorming session would have gotten me the big money I am worth (sez Stuart Smalley). Not that I'm necessarily underpaid, but today a couple of us drove the session and went from chaotic collection of half-baked ideas to storyboard, game levels, characters, plot complications, and arc/throughline. Damn, I think I might actually know what I'm doing. Who knew?