““An artist understands that self-renewal is the only way to avoid burning out.””
– @lukew on Twitter
Archive for the ‘magicmacguffin’ Category
"An artist understands that self-renewal is the only way to avoid burning out."
Thursday, May 24th, 2012A Voyage At A Young Age: A Video Daily Create
Thursday, May 24th, 2012Today’s Daily Create 136
Camp Time!
Thursday, May 24th, 2012Hi all – Jerry here, just wanting to say hi to all the other campers at Maj McGuff.
I’m looking forward to some time this summer spent “creating.” I spend most of my days fixing problems, trying to anticipate problems, or reacting to problems that don’t get fixed the first try. There is some creativity in that job, but not necessarily the kind you might consider “fun.”
As a former member of DTLT, I’m always interested in what they are up to, and have been really impressed by the DS106 course, and how it has opened them up to a giant wave of creative thought, about not just digital story telling, but it oozes and spills into their other activities as well.
Simply put, i want some of that spillover in my own day to day. By restarting the fun creative process, I’m hoping it will cause me to change the way I’m thinking about the things I’m doing every day.
I’m also looking forward to reengaging with some online tools that will be part of the online creative process. The past few years have lead me to tools that help me do the daily work, but again, I could use more fun – this is the ticket.
Looking forward to seeing you all around camp – it is going to be a great time!
The Daily Create #136 – “Tell us a family legend about you…
Thursday, May 24th, 2012
The Daily Create #136 – “Tell us a family legend about you or someone in your family.”
Harrowing Night
Thursday, May 24th, 2012
The Sunset before "Harrowing Night"
Given that my mine is currently overrun with a variety of creatures and is imperfectly defended, I have been working on the higher reaches of the space, having protected myself by breaking the access via the construction bridge from below. My current goal is to close in the sky-high view panorama window, thereby sealing the mine from unintended external access. However, fascinated as I was by the colours of the setting sun, I waited far too long to vacate the recently-installed construction scaffold on the outside window. Before I knew it, it was too dark to make my way off the perilous structure and back to the security of my nearby mining hut. I was able to create gaps in the scaffold at either end (it was still attached to the sheer cliff face), and resolved myself to wait out the rising of the sun.
That I am still here to tell this tale the next morning is the shortened conclusion to the experience. However, the cold from the high altitude (snow is prevalent), the grunts and cries of nearby monsters, the darkness of the night, the onset of drowsiness (normally, I pass the night by sleeping), and my vertigo-fueled apprehension of falling made for a very traumatic ordeal.
Still Alive the Next Morning after the "Harrowing Night"
Fosse 2
Thursday, May 24th, 2012For the sheer joy of working with the material.
The Legend of Hector
Wednesday, May 23rd, 2012First week of camp and we’re already telling our stories. Today’s daily create was to tell a family legend to our other campers. My family, like most, is a little nuts and filled with crazy stories. I flip-flopped between the secret ingredient my Granddad used in his BBQ sauce (spit, by the way) and this one…Hector.
I won’t rehash the story…you get to watch it.
I will, however, add to the legend of Hector by telling a tale about my cousin Matt. At some point in the legend of Hector, Matt and my Uncle Jerry were in the basement near the double doors and when it came time to leave Matt’s shirt got caught on my Uncle’s belt buckle. He bolted up the stairs thinking that Hector had reached out to grab him. I laugh about this now but, make no mistake, Hector scared the daylights out of all the grandchildren more than once.
Resources used:
- iMovie ’11
- Flickr Image
- MacPro
- Blue Snowball Microphone
- The delightfully deranged creativity of my grandmother
Glam Rock Me Baby!
Wednesday, May 23rd, 2012
I’m a child of the 70s, so glam rock is where it’s at for me! I saw Elton at the Garden in ’76 when he dressed up as the Statue of Liberty and rose up from a trap door in the stage floor. In an instant, my mind was opened to a new world of anything goes! It was that and all the smoke.
Topping the list of my favorites are David Bowie and Freddy Mercury of Queen. In the early 80s, they collaborated on an amazing song and video called “Under Pressure.” The video looks like a mashup you’d see on the web today, completely ahead of its time: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWca8OGaR0U .
While I’m laying down some basic tracks, I initially need vocals. We can use them as reference tracks as we go along, or we may keep them, who knows? For now, vocals is what I need.”Under Pressure” resonates more today than during the Reagan era that it was born to. This song begs for a revisit in the 21st century using the 21st century’s capability for crowdsourcing. So, what say you, campers and all those DS106 people out there? Help me with the first step.
Please do me the favor of uploading a track of your singing, shouting, talking, or overdramatically-reading the lyrics to the song Under Pressure. Please do it acapella (that means no instrumentation, just your voice). If you are off-key, that’s what autotune is for, if we need to. I kinda like offkey. I will be laying down the initial tracks in the original E flat major if you are musically inclined. Otherwise, on-key is optional 
The lyrics are here:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/queen/underpressure.html
How to upload and record? Get a SoundCloud account. You caneither record right there or upload right there. Then, put your track in the “Zazzy Under Pressure” group at http://soundcloud.com/groups/zazzy-under-pressure .
Looking forward to hearing you explore your vocal chops, as they say in the “BIZ.”
Potential of You and Me
Wednesday, May 23rd, 2012This is what I see on my keyboard while listening to #ds106radio from work. Tripper Harrison is spinning some lovely today through the Magic Macguffin PA system.
Camp and Summer Goals
Wednesday, May 23rd, 2012A quick post… I’ve got a few goals for my summer at Camp that may take me slightly off the beaten path from the rest of the campers. I guess that’s one of the great things about being a DS106 graduate: I can set my own assignment schedule!
I want to focus on video and audio assignments, particularly the latter, because I’m quite weak in the audio department. My talents lie in the visual/design and the written world, and I think my blog reflects that; you don’t see much of those assignments.
Camping Pod by Sheep"R"Us
Click here to see this image on Flickr.
Also, I plan to participate in Camp NaNoWriMo in June and August, and I would like to do more traditional artwork–painting, that is to say. I’ve discovered a real passion for painting this year, and my foray isn’t entirely separate from DS106. I really allowed myself to embrace the artist within me after the Summer of Oblivion. I felt myself come alive during that time like I had not felt in a while, and I finally accepted that creativity is an essential part of my life–not just writing, but all kinds of creativity.
Separate from DS106, I’d like to work in exercise and The Daily Create as part of my daily routine. I’ve successfully added 750words.com into my schedule, so it’s time to take the next step.
