May 10 - O'Neill's Acoustic Show
It's been a while, but I'm happy to announce that I'll be performing a live acoustic show as part of a charity benefit / happy hour for Team in Training, which raises funds for leukemia and lymphoma research. The show is Thursday, May 10th at 5:30 PM at O'Neill's Irish Pub, and tickets (donations) are $10 at the door. Hope to see you there!
Friday, April 27 at 2:16 PM
I'm Not Sick But I'm Not Well
A brilliant musical performance from the guys at Connected Ventures.
Monday, April 23 at 11:52 AM
Hyposoma
This is an instrumental version of an obscure Okay Samurai song I wrote in 11th grade. Sadly, it was never recorded and only performed live once (the UVA Alumni Hall show in 2000). So, for the sake of documentation (before I forget how to play it) and an excuse to test out the new camera, here's Hyposoma.
Sunday, April 22 at 12:31 AM
Zoomed In
All the filming I've done in recent years - Okaydave, I'm Walking Here, Paula - has been with a Sony Cybershot digital camera. The quality is fine for the web, the camera is compact enough to take along anywhere, and the file sizes are relatively small. Nowadays, between work and new video and music ideas, it seemed about time to upgrade. So today I got the Sony DCR-SR300, which has a built-in 40GB hard drive (so no tapes or DVDs) and cool features like super slo-mo (shoots 240 fps for 3 seconds, and then plays it back over 12 seconds). I haven't made a new video in about a year now, so hopefully this will motivate me to do some new work...
Update: To Mac users - you should know that exporting video from this camera into an editing program like iMovie takes a few extra steps. You're going to need the Quicktime Mpeg-2 Playback Component ($19.99) and Mpeg Streamclip (free) to convert them. Here's hoping that Sony and Apple make things a little easier for us in the future.
Friday, April 20 at 9:22 AM
Virginia Tech RA
(by Michael Ferenczy)
At Tufts I was an RA for three years. I broke up a few parties (only if they were too loud or out of control), mediated numerous roommate conflicts, and counseled students on love issues. Only once did I feel unsafe, when some drunk guy from another school called me homophobic slurs and threatened me, but I am pretty big, and one of my residents, a black belt in karate, was right around the corner when I kicked him out of the dorm, so I wasn't even that worried. I always thought of myself as a good RA, sometimes even as a great RA because I cared and would drop what I was doing to handle my reponsibilities. My friend Al, who also went to Tufts and was a three year RA, posted today about the Virginia Tech tragedy, and that the first death identified was the RA (link). When something like this happens, I sometimes imagine what I would have done if I had been there (I believe this is a fairly common thing for people to do). Anyway, when I imagine myself in a situation like that, I like to think that I would be brave and be the hero. Unfortunately, that's probably not true. Probably, Ryan Clark, the RA, didn't even have a chance to react. He responds to a disturbance and gets shot, just doing his job, caring about what happens on his hall and to his residents. That's a true shame, because most of the RAs I have known are great people, doing a job because it helps pay for college, but also because of the feeling of satisfaction derived from helping others through the up and down emotions and stress of school. According to news stories (for example), Ryan Clark was a great person, friend, student, and RA, and he, along with dozens of others, did not deserve to die in a senseless shooting. I hope Virgina Tech honors him for all his work (marching band, multiple majors, etc) as well as for being a good RA. I also hope that those of you reading this post take a minute to appreciate being alive and having loved ones you care about who also care about you. It's a shame that it takes something like this to remind many of us how good we have it and how wonderful it is to have friends and family, but since that's the sad truth, we can try to honor the dead by loving the living just a little more.
Tuesday, April 17 at 6:51 AM
Home for the Weekend
Just got back from a great weekend visiting April and the Okay Samurai guys in DC. A few new photos are up (and here are some from Jeff too).
Monday, April 16 at 4:03 PM
Pearls Before Breakfast
A great story about violinist Joshua Bell performing in a DC Metro Station.
Monday, April 9 at 11:31 AM
Three Months
Today it's been three months since I came out west, bringing my total post-college homes to four: Baltimore, Atlanta, New York, and now San Francisco. And while career decisions served as the primary rationale behind each move, that's still a lot of shuffling around for five years. Somehow my Ikea bed defies gravity now after losing several screws and support beams through all the travels. Seriously, three more moves and that thing will be levitating and opening up dimensional rifts in the space-time fabric. Those Swedes and their crazy designs!
San Francisco continues to be a great personal fit. The relatively laid-back lifestyle is reminiscent of Atlanta, except now it's accompanied by avocado rolls instead of sweet tea. Everyone is still giving that "You see Dave, the thing about San Francisco is..." speech, which is usually followed by some little anecdote about the weather. The weather has taken some getting used to. Most mornings I'm wearing multiple layers while waving my arms blindly through foggy breezes. Then the sun appears out of nowhere and burns it all away, leaving me and my Gryffindor scarf seemingly out of place. It's weird, but I sorta like it. I also had my first earthquake a few weeks ago while in a third-story movie theater. But it was nothing to write home about - just a 4.2. The building shook a little, everyone laughed and checked their cell phones, and 30 seconds later it was like nothing had happened.
Minor Studios is also coming along great. I'm having an incredible time, and can't wait to show you guys what we're working on. Soon, soon.
Sunday, April 8 at 11:51 AM
Under Consideration
Three quick notes. First, Speak Up just published a book showcasing their popular Word-It feature, and I'm lucky to have a few illustrations in there. It should be in bookstores over the next couple of weeks. Second, the HOW Conference Early Bird deadline is next Friday, so if you're thinking of attending in June, it probably makes sense to register now. Finally, make sure to check out Portfolio Center roommate Howard's "Things I Will / Won't Miss About Atlanta" as he gets ready to make the move out west to LA in a week. That kid is going places, I tell you.
Thursday, April 5 at 5:29 PM
Exploring Muir
My parents and sister visited me out west for the first time this weekend. We spent today exploring Sausalito and Muir Woods/Beach. A few photos are here.
Sunday, April 1 at 11:04 PM
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