Happy New Year
Sunday, December 31st, 2006
Archive for the ‘Nerdio’ Category
Grinch Proof
Sunday, December 3rd, 2006
My pal K. called me about a week ago. “You gotta learn to play this song,” he said. I was kinda ambivelent - my original ambition had been to learn a good classic Hannukah song for the Seattle Ukulele Player’s Association holiday party. I started fishing around for music and everything was minor key and somber and not in Hawaiian so much. Or, just kind of dumb, I mean, “I had a little dreidl’ is not a particularly clever bit of songwriting.
So I caved. I’ve spent the last week hashing through Santa Baby in my kitchen. And today, I put on a red dress and my black cowboy boots (”Now that’s how I like MY Santa!” my friend Pat said to me) and headed over to the SUPA open mic. I played Mark Erelli’s Call You Home to warm up and then, I stood up, took a deep breath, and launched into my best Eartha Kitt.
Which wasn’t very good. I stumbled in the middle. “DOH! I lost my place!” I said, while the three smart alecs in the front row kept singing. “I really do believe in you…” “ACK! Okay.” I started again at the beginning of the verse. I made it through the fancy chord progression bridge I’ve been working on, though, even after my mistake - I think they’d call that a “nice save’ in sports - and I got a mid-song round of applause!
Angela, who played a sweet and soft version of Starry Starry Night right before me, talked about how great it is to play in front of this group. Everyone loves you, no matter what you do. You can’t help but love them right back.
We had a terrific potluck lunch with several kinds of delicious chicken, salads, and many varieties of dessert. Almost everyone got a raffle prize and then, we sang. A good time was had by all. Whos in Whoville, we challenge you to a cheerfulness smackdown.
So. Here you go. Imperfect, like me. Folks with sensitive ears for things like “key” and “timing” may wish to skip the audio link. Also, keep in mind that I’m both better and worse in person.
Sidebar note: File under podcast tips for intermediates - I had a fantastic interview recording session today with the most wonderful woman. Don’t tell me I can’t learn from my mistakes! Everything worked beautifully. Score.
Podcast Tips for Beginners
Saturday, November 18th, 2006
Yup, once again, an episode of “Learn from a total moron’s mistakes.” Take notes, people, so you don’t have to learn the hard way like I am.
Today’s lesson is called Know Your Hardware.
Say you shop around a little and you spring for a cute little mic. And it works good, yessiree, you know that because you’ve tried it out at home. Well, you drive across town and hook the thing up, right? But before you hit record, make sure you’ve set your laptop to use that cute little mic as the input. Because if you don’t, the quiet talking guy who’s telling you really delightful tales, backed up by his equally delightful wife, will be the ultra-quiet talking guy on the recording. See, the built in recorder on your laptop is directional and it’s not facing HIM, it’s facing you. You’ll come in loud and clear, yes sir, and the gracious quiet talking guy well, you know what he’s talking about because you were there. But your listeners? Ha. You will have to find a post recording filter to run all that audio through. That will be a drag. Yes sir.
I did remember to leave the recording running. And next time, I will do an actual sound check. I’ll ask my interviewee to tell me what they had for breakfast or something, and then, I’ll play it back. And THEN, I’ll start the session. Check, one, two. Check, one, two. Check, are you a moron? Yes. Yes I am.
You are not a moron, though. Not like I am, biting off more than you can chew without knowing what the hell you’re doing.
It was a great session, though. I’m determined to save a bunch of this audio. I’ll find a way. I’m a dork, but I’m a resourceful dork. And if YOU know of a way, let me know, eh?
Podcast Tips for Beginners
Wednesday, November 15th, 2006It’s time again for an episode of “Learn from a total moron’s mistakes.”
I’m working on a podcast project that involves going to interview actual humans. They talk, I record and try not to interupt, ever, but sometimes they are funny and make me laugh. That has nothing to do with today’s lesson.
Today’s lesson is this: Do not stop recording until you have your coat on and are leaving. Because if you stop recording and pack away your gear too soon, you will miss out on having a absolutely charming man play “Don’t know enough about you” [You Tube link] on his uke. And you will be really, really sorry you weren’t recording.
Also useful to do? Slow down when you’re talking. The man I spoke with today had beautiful clear delivery, I sound all blurry and fast in comparison.
Keep that tape (virtual or otherwise) rolling, dammit, and slow down.
Nerd’s Eye View has a suspiciously bisexual internet crush on a handful of expat bloggers in Europe, including Sal, Christina, Erin, and Di. I’m looking forward to a future involving snark and sangria in Spain. Plus, y’all are invited for XC skiing. Mr. Nerd’s Eye View won’t mind a bit.
There’s No Place Like It
Monday, November 6th, 2006
Welcome to the next Nerd’s Eye View podcast. It includes three stories about home. In the first segment, Julia remembers home with a song. In the second segment, Jesse asks about the words to the Czech national anthem. In the third (read by me) Marilyn talks about finding home in an unexpected place. The music is by Emmylou Harris, Mark Erelli and Zero 7 - oh, and the Czech National Anthem is by Frantisek Skoup with lyrics by Josef Kajetan Tyl.
Tech notes: Julia and Jesse mailed me their audio files and I mixed the whole thing using MixMeister Propaganda and Nero’s Wave Editor. I’m still struggling with how to equalize the volume between tracks. I have a lot to learn about production. Feedback is welcome, but give some love to the participants.
I love doing this so much that I want to do it again, and I want you to participate. Next topic? Inspired by shouting neighbors and angry emails, it’s Quit Shouting At Me! Open to your interpretation, of course. Email your audio files - wav, mp3, wma are easiest for me, but I’ll deal. Please don’t add music, send it in a separate file if need be. If you can’t do audio but you can stand hearing me read, send me your less than 800 word story. Deadline? November 24th or, you know, something like that. Contact me with any questions, if you want to particpate, I really want to make it easy for you.
Thanks Julia, Jesse, and Marilyn. You’re the best.
For ultracoolness, you can subscribe to the Nerd’s Eye View podcasts in iTunes! Click Advanced>Subscribe to podcast and copy this in to the box that appears:
http://www.nerdseyeview.com/blog/?feed=rss2
Nerd’s Eye View sells out. Yup, those are ads you see on the sidebar. Click them, okay? I might earn enough to pay for hosting or something. I’d like that.
WGBH Morning Stories and Nerd’s Eye View
Thursday, November 2nd, 2006If you go to WGBH Morning Stories and click Home Alone you’ll hear - hey, wait! That’s me! I start at about the six minute mark, but you should listen to the whole thing.
I am giddy with delight to find that I don’t sound like a complete idiot. It is odd to hear the edited version - we talked for probably half an hour and this is just a few minutes with big chunks cut out. Still, the sentiment of the conversation is very much intact and wait ’til you hear what Tony Kahn says to me. I really want to do it again.
Morning Stories is doing some fundraising, so if you love them as much as they love me, you might think about sending them a nickel or two. You know exactly where their money is going now, right?
The original story is here.
Nerd’s Eye View quotes NPR commentator Kevin Kling: “It’s been said that God loves stories so much that he created people so there would be an endless supply.”
