1. My tree died the other day, which I am presuming it was due to the extensive period that I had it on. Sad, really. For something that only is operated for about 3 weeks a year, you'd think it would hold out.
2. Finally got my super fun car: a Toyota Yaris. I believe the name "Manischevitz" has been bestowed, mainly due to my overzealous love of kosher goods.
3. Going home for a few days, and I am hoping it won't be hellish. The weather, of course.
4. Enjoyed seeing Tron: Legacy with a friend at the DGA screening room. Felt pretty cool for about 15 minutes.
5. It's been raining a whole bunch lately! Usually don't mind, but the roads are really awful.
That'll do.
Monday, December 20, 2010
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Minnesota state of mind Part II
I remember a time when I welcomed the rapid heartbeat of caffeine. It doesn't seem too long ago, indulging in one espresso after the other. Sweaty palms. Carrying on conversations with soon to be friends. Phone numbers exchanged, empty promises of "next time". having a list of shops where I would have my social hour, while the others were marked as centers of productivity. I loved running into some of the characters, especially when I was feeling lonely or suppressed of creativity. Most times, the fables they told had my jaw grazing the nearby Utne Reader. I could feel my eyes widening, if not for them; but for my own joy at having such outlandish people to listen to. Only silent gestures and murmurs of shock were exchanged while my ears were filled with anecdotes. Being more of a private person, I prefer to hear various accounts from another. Speaking of which, I have heard some of the best while minding that role. Heartbreak, drugs, thievery, and scandal headlined most of the sordid tales. I felt honored that these raconteurs felt comfort with me hearing their stories. Trusting me with their childhood traumas, or just a banal day in the life, I was allowed to see in. When they would leave me to chat someone else up, I would feel relieved initially, then distracted. How am I supposed to write self-indulgently when all I can think about is his home invasion? My drama was considerably tame, and less interesting to say the least. I ended up drawing half-assed female faces, along with short biographies.
One time I was there, writing and drawing in a flurry, a fedora clad fellow sauntered up, and jotted: "music hides you from the bullshit", then went on his way. My mind wrapped around that slogan many times, being cautious due to uncertain intent. Maybe he thought what I was writing was bullshit, which wasn't completely off base. The more I obsessed about it, logic finally entered the room and assured me that he meant well. When I look back, I know my penmanship and aura warranted his mantra. Never would have guessed in that one moment, I would fully appreciate the human condition.
One time I was there, writing and drawing in a flurry, a fedora clad fellow sauntered up, and jotted: "music hides you from the bullshit", then went on his way. My mind wrapped around that slogan many times, being cautious due to uncertain intent. Maybe he thought what I was writing was bullshit, which wasn't completely off base. The more I obsessed about it, logic finally entered the room and assured me that he meant well. When I look back, I know my penmanship and aura warranted his mantra. Never would have guessed in that one moment, I would fully appreciate the human condition.
Saturday, December 11, 2010
A mid-winter's adventure/lewd photographs Part 1
A friend of mine came into to town on Wednesday, and we made the best of the short time we had. He's one of the hippest cats I know. He plays in a band called "Skeleton Show", in Denver, and everyone should check it out. Although he may not enjoy the corn dog pic; hindsight is 20/20, right?
Tuesday, December 07, 2010
Wednesday, December 01, 2010
To all the Google searches
I know a lot of you land on this site when searching for Master control operator. Let me tell you of my years (8-plus!) of master controlling.
1. Enjoy tedium. Checking network logs, making sure everything is airing correctly. There won't a lot of new things to learn once you settle in, and sometimes, it is a dead end job. (exceptions, of course) If you like MC'ing, this won't be an issue. Some people love this job, and I understand why. It doesn't require an awful lot of brain power (which can be a good thing), as long as your common sense smart, you will have tremendous success in this field. (Please note: there are moments of trouble shooting, live events, and other obstacles that I really can't fit here that do require a good amount of brains, patience, and deep breaths)
2. You are there to ensure if there is failure of a device, automation, content, or a human, to correct the problem instantly, and get the program on air. Black on air = losses of tons and tons of money. And possibly your job.
3. Grabbing satellite signals, so you can record programs for future airing. Some places don't have you do this, sometimes they arrive on tape from distribution centers. Or on hard drives, flash drives, FTP, Aspera, ect. Or if you're lucky, you work at a facility where the ingest department is separate from the master control.
4. enjoy watching tons and tons of TV. It's an odd job for someone like me, but it enables me to do other things in my spare time because you can't take master control home with you. I work with people that do stand-up comedy, musicians, ect.
5. I've never worked at an affiliate station, only for cable networks. I can't speak for them. I work at a multi-network one, so I can only speak for those. We run fully automated on a server, so no more manual takes, or playing tapes. It's all loaded in the computer for air. We only deal with the traffic department at each network.
6. Get used to not getting credit. I at one time did live master control and at the end of the season, they would never put us in the credits. I mean, how did all those breaks roll, and who put them on air? (Sort of like being that old guy in "Wizard of Oz" behind the curtain) I know it's a trivial complaint, but it would've been nice to have a shout out after the 125+ events that required an MCO.
7. Multi-tasking. Some don't require this, but get your octopus arms ready; some require you to take on multiple items at once. Especially ones that have an immediate deadline, and you STILL haven't grabbed that hot pocket out of the microwave, and ran to the restroom yet.
Any questions, comments?
1. Enjoy tedium. Checking network logs, making sure everything is airing correctly. There won't a lot of new things to learn once you settle in, and sometimes, it is a dead end job. (exceptions, of course) If you like MC'ing, this won't be an issue. Some people love this job, and I understand why. It doesn't require an awful lot of brain power (which can be a good thing), as long as your common sense smart, you will have tremendous success in this field. (Please note: there are moments of trouble shooting, live events, and other obstacles that I really can't fit here that do require a good amount of brains, patience, and deep breaths)
2. You are there to ensure if there is failure of a device, automation, content, or a human, to correct the problem instantly, and get the program on air. Black on air = losses of tons and tons of money. And possibly your job.
3. Grabbing satellite signals, so you can record programs for future airing. Some places don't have you do this, sometimes they arrive on tape from distribution centers. Or on hard drives, flash drives, FTP, Aspera, ect. Or if you're lucky, you work at a facility where the ingest department is separate from the master control.
4. enjoy watching tons and tons of TV. It's an odd job for someone like me, but it enables me to do other things in my spare time because you can't take master control home with you. I work with people that do stand-up comedy, musicians, ect.
5. I've never worked at an affiliate station, only for cable networks. I can't speak for them. I work at a multi-network one, so I can only speak for those. We run fully automated on a server, so no more manual takes, or playing tapes. It's all loaded in the computer for air. We only deal with the traffic department at each network.
6. Get used to not getting credit. I at one time did live master control and at the end of the season, they would never put us in the credits. I mean, how did all those breaks roll, and who put them on air? (Sort of like being that old guy in "Wizard of Oz" behind the curtain) I know it's a trivial complaint, but it would've been nice to have a shout out after the 125+ events that required an MCO.
7. Multi-tasking. Some don't require this, but get your octopus arms ready; some require you to take on multiple items at once. Especially ones that have an immediate deadline, and you STILL haven't grabbed that hot pocket out of the microwave, and ran to the restroom yet.
Any questions, comments?
La Vida en la actualidad
1. Ole Blue died. My Saturn of 10 years has called it quits. The positive: found out I now come equipped with a high credit score...go go responsibility!
2. Attempting to buy a Toyota Yarrrrr-is. I have the financing, just waiting on the pira-private seller to hand over the vehicle.
3. put my Christmas tree up. It's silver with fiber optics, and I waste most of my day staring at it.
4. A friend will be coming next week for a weekend extravaganza. Have to start pretending that I am really cool, and that I am constantly overrun with plans.
5. Possibly having a dinner party. My anxiety and I will keep you posted if that happens.
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