I am very glad, indeed I finally return home
05 Mar 2010 4 Comments
in Cinema, Music, Strange Tags: 70s, awesome, cheesy, corny, lip syncing, Russian, singing, TV, USSR, youtube
I’m sure this will be the next big thing to rock the interwebs, so it’s my pleasure to share it with you, gentle readers. The only clue I have as to its origins is the barely noticeable “1976″ printed in the bottom left corner, and the Russian title, which, according to Babelfish, translates to “I am very glad, indeed I finally return home.”
My mother once said that nothing good came out of the seventies. The fashions, the hair styles, the color schemes, the architecture, the cinema… This video is the culmination of all of the bad aspects of the seventies. Yet, somehow when they are all put together something truly corny and wonderful is created, which is greater than the sum of its parts.
I vaguely recall seeing reruns of variety shows from the seventies where the musical flavor of the month would come on and “sing” their latest hit. By “sing” I mean move their lips to a prerecorded tape. Why should the USSR be any different? To me, the lip syncing makes this video all the more awesome.
Mozart: Adagio in b minor, K. 540
08 Jan 2010 1 Comment
in Cinema, Music, Technology Tags: Adagio in b minor, home movies, Mozart, piano, recital, Richard Goode, Roxio Easy VHS to DVD, youtube
Since acquiring the Roxio Easy VHS to DVD hookup, I’ve been kind of obsessed with transferring home movies to digital format. I’ve taken all the home movies from my parents’ house with the intention of preserving my childhood memories on the computer and eventually YouTube. I’ve even taken to raiding my friends’ houses for their home movies. I may be going a bit overboard.
Among the videos I unearthed was my senior piano recital from college, almost seven years ago. While I’m the first to admit that it was not one of my best overall performances (read: there were several very noticeable mistakes), I did manage to pull a couple flawless gems from the relative muck. One of those is Mozart’s Adagio in b minor, K. 540.
While not the most technically difficult piece I’ve ever played, the emotional investment in this piece was great. There is a melancholy longing that is felt through almost painfully exquisite exposed simplicity.
Incidentally, I was incredibly fortunate to have the honor of being coached on this piece during a master class earlier in the year by the legendary Richard Goode, who is well known for his interpretation of Beethoven. While everyone else in my studio was prepared with a Beethoven sonata, Mr. Goode seemed delighted at the opportunity to work with me on the Mozart. Definitely one of the highlights of my musical career.
Please excuse the quality of the video; it was transferred from a quickly deteriorating VHS tape, and the person running the camera (which was supposedly set up on a tripod) didn’t have the steadiest hand at times. That said, I’m impressed that the sound quality is as good as it is.
Megan Dancing
03 Dec 2009 4 Comments
in Childlike, Cinema, Strange Tags: dancing, Delaware Special Olympics, Roxio Easy VHS to DVD, telethon, VHS, youtube
Back in 1985 or so, when I was about four years old, I took “dance” lessons. I put “dance” in quotation marks because while we wore dance shoes and tights, we didn’t exactly dance. It was more of a coordination class. Well, apparently, our dance teacher thought we were so fabulous that she volunteered us to perform on live television, for the Delaware Special Olympics Telethon.
While my parents drove me to the television studio, which they tell me was many, many miles away, a neighbor offered to record the telethon so that my television debut would be forever saved for posterity. It was saved on a simple black VHS labeled “Megan Dancing,” which I have just transferred to the computer using my brand new Roxio Easy VHS to DVD.
A few notes about the performance, which may be more clear after you watch it:
- The quality is a little wonky, but that should be expected considering the tape is almost 25 years old.
- I was the line leader.
- We were supposed to stop in the middle of the stage, not at the far side.
- We did actually have a routine prepared.
- Despite what happened, we were not part of the Special Olympics.
Recent reviews of our performance raved:
So cute and a little scary!
Don’t quit your day job!
Even after all these years, it makes me laugh til tears are in my eyes.
And so, gentle readers, without further ado I present “Megan Dancing.” Enjoy!
Roxio Easy VHS to DVD
02 Dec 2009 3 Comments
in Cinema, Material, Technology Tags: camcorder, DVD, home movies, iMovie, Roxio Easy VHS to DVD, VCR, VHS
I don’t remember having a lot of home movies made when I was a kid. Some parents toted the video camera everywhere with them, recording each inconsequential moment of their precious little snowflakes’ lives. The result was usually stacks of VHS tapes in a box or a closet, gathering dust for years because everyone was too embarrassed to watch them.
Because my parents were much more selective about what they captured with the camcorder (that, and the fact that I don’t remember even having a camcorder until I was almost in high school), our selection of home movies is rather limited. Most of them, in fact, are still on the teeny little tapes that came with the new technology of our camcorder – no more lugging around full-sized VHS tapes! – which also means that we probably can’t even watch them anymore, since I don’t think my parents even know where the camcorder is.
Speaking of watching home movies, and other VHS tapes, does anyone even own a VCR anymore? My parents do, but I doubt that it’s hooked up. My grandparents do, but they still don’t really know how to work it. I was talking to a student of mine about VHS tapes and VCRs a while back, and she looked at me like I was making the concept up.
In any case, about the same time that I was rooting through a box of VHS tapes of my own, a friend of mine decided to hook up his VCR. I found a few “home” tapes that had only my name on the label to indicate that something I did had been recorded. We decided to see what was on the tapes.
Lo an behold, two of the tapes held my senior and graduate piano recitals! I would have completely forgotten about them, had it not been for a sudden urge to hook up the VCR. Of course, it’s not like I can show them to anyone, due to the previously stated disappearing VCR phenomenon.
Enter Roxio Easy VHS to DVD. This is the best $80 I have spent all year. The hookup is really quite foolproof: you just connect the video and audio output cords from your VCR into the plugs provided in the box, which connect to a USB plug that hooks into your computer. The image and sound then plays through your computer via the newly installed program, and you can record as much or as little as you like. You can then edit the movie like you would any other in a program like iMovie and either burn the memories to DVD or publish embarrassing childhood moments to YouTube.
This nifty little gadget is available for both PC and Mac, though for some reason, the Mac version costs $20 more.
The only problem I have found is that the new digital files often take up quite a bit of room on one’s computer, especially if they are long clips. However, if you have an external hard drive with an insane amount of space, this really shouldn’t be an issue.
Tune in tomorrow, when I post the real reason why I purchased this product.
Something NaNo this way comes
02 Oct 2009 4 Comments
in Books, Cinema, Seasonal Tags: Bruce McCullough, Kids In The Hall, NaNoWriMo, NaNoWriMo '09, stay down, youtube
Well, gentle readers, it’s that time again. With thirty days left in the month of October, I have once again signed up for the infamous National Novel Writing Month challenge. This will be my fourth year participating, and (we can always hope) the year that I actually reach the goal of writing 50,000 words in thirty days.
It’s funny, really. Every year I surprise myself with how excited I get about this silly little challenge. I made sure that my user name was still active two months ago. When I saw that they would be starting fresh for this season’s NaNoWriMo today, I found myself checking the website every 15 minutes so that I could get a glimpse of the brand new badges (like the one to your right). I even know what I’m going to write about, and I really have to restrain myself from starting to write right now. It’s sad, I know, but it just proves that I’m not doing a bad thing by participating.
I have a bad reputation for starting NaNoWriMo with high hopes and well thought-out plans, and for letting the whole thing flush unceremoniously down the commode. With that said, there really isn’t a good reason to think that I’ll miraculously earn the coveted “winner” badge to display proudly wherever images are proudly displayed.
I’ll tell you what, though, gentle readers, after three consecutive years of not winning, I’m more determined than ever to meet the challenge. Despite my bad track record, some things have changed from years past that might give me a snowball’s chance in hell:
Years past: My state’s music teachers association’s state conference sucked up a huge portion of my precious time.
This year: I have resigned my post as Conference Registrar, meaning that I will actually have a life in the month of November. Let some other schmuck do it.
Years past: Editing my state’s music teachers association’s annual yearbook, the biggest and most important publication of the year, required more of my attention than I was willing to give.
This year: As with the position of Conference Registrar, I have sort of resigned my post as Yearbook Editor. I say “sort of” because I have agreed to temporarily remain on call as Co-Editor, but this title is mainly given out of respect for my willingness to help my replacement not completely screw everything up. Either way, I expect to have a lot more free time.
Years past: Thanksgiving was spent in a house that was so lovely it makes my heart ache not to be in it, but that was over six hours away. Driving that distance takes a lot of time and energy away from writing.
This year: Thanksgiving will be spent either here or at my parents house, which is only an hour away. Also, since I took on most of the Thanksgiving feast preparations last year (believe me, I am in no way complaining), I now know what exactly is involved and can be even more time and energy efficient so as to maximize my holiday writing.
Years past: Pulling creative bits of fiction from my brain, despite extensive planning, proved to be much more difficult than I had expected. I ended up writing myself into a corner, not knowing where to go next.
This year: I have decided to take a semi-autobiographical route. Since I have a wealth of memories built up over the last almost-thirty years, I don’t expect to have as much of a problem thinking of things to write about.
Years past: I did not have an iPod Touch.
This year: I do have an iPod Touch. That doesn’t really make a difference in the grand scheme of novel writing, but I thought I should mention it.
Over the past three years of participating in NaNoWriMo, I may have broken the 50,000-word barrier collectively. I know I passed 31,000 words last year. The years before weren’t so great; I may have averaged 15,000 words the two years before that. Given that the trend is on the upswing, the odds are in my favor that I may come close enough to my goal to push through to the end.
Of course, there is a part of me that feels like Bruce McCullough’s shrimpy little Napoleonic fighter that picks a fight with the tough guy twice his size, who (no matter how many times he is punched out, and despite pleas from his girlfriend, the crowd gathered around him and even the monster he is fighting) won’t admit that he’s bitten off more than he can chew and just will not stay down.
What I learned on my summer vacation
02 Sep 2009 3 Comments
in Animals, Cinema, Food, Material, Nomadic Tags: bees, blood, Brad Pitt, Burger King, Bœuf bourguignon, Coca-cola, digital camera, disco, DMV, driving, family, grammar, hash browns, honey, labels, McDonald's, Meryl Streep, panorama, Quentin Tarantino, students, support, sushi, tissues, Whatchamacallit, youtube
The universe works in mysterious ways.
McDonald’s once again serves honey as a dipping sauce for nuggets.
Always, always carry tissues in your purse.
An abundance of Coca-cola and Whatchamacallits make driving for sixteen straight hours a possibility.
“Alright,” much to my chagrin, is actually a grammatically legal alternative to “all right.”
Family and friends are remarkably supportive when you least expect it.
Meryl Streep is one hell of an actress.
Although I can’t stand Brad Pitt as a person, he, too, is one hell of an actor.
Squeamishness comes with age.
Quentin Tarantino gets better with age.
My digital camera apparently has a panorama/photo stitch function.
There is no such thing as too much sushi.
There is such a thing as too much disco.
Spices and herbs in the kitchen should always be marked clearly.
Fifth graders are much less stressful than second graders, but preschoolers are much more fun to play with.
Bœuf bourguignon is not nearly as difficult to make as some people claim.
The department of motor vehicles does not always to remind you that the registration for your automobile is about to expire, so it is prudent to take note of the date by which it must be renewed.
Hash browns from Burger King leave a taste so foul in your mouth that even a piece of gum will only make it taste like minty death.
It’s OK to change your mind.
Bees do not like to be photographed.
This is the best YouTube video, ever:
Friends
26 Jun 2009 3 Comments
in Cinema Tags: animation, ball, claymation, dinosaur, friends, frog, MacBook, photo booth, Play-Doh, stop motion, Vimeo
My experiments into stop motion animation are evolving. Specifically, they are evolving into dinosaurs.
As with the last video, which utilized modeling clay, this was shot entirely with the built-in camera on my MacBook. I’ve upgraded from monochromatic clay to bright and vibrant Play-Doh.
Incidentally, I found out last week that one can purchase twenty four rather large containers of Play-Doh for less than $10. That’s a good deal if I ever saw one.
Current events
25 Jun 2009 4 Comments
in Blogging, Childlike, Cinema, Music, Strange Tags: brothers, celebrities, clapping games, dance, death, Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, Michael Jackson, Miss Susie, music video, NPR, Theology Girl, Thriller, youtube
Once upon a time, I regularly checked in on a blog that was maintained by the wife of a friend of my main squeeze. Her posts were witty and hilarious, covering everything from the mundane and ordinary to the spiritual and all that is Josh Groban. Over the course of some months I developed a feeling of oneness with this woman who, despite being friends on Facebook, I have never actually met.
Then one day the posts stopped. There was some lame excuse for not blogging. Something about a doctoral dissertation and birthing a small human being. Every once in a while (read: every four or five months) a new post would show up in my RSS reader, letting the world know that she had not in fact fallen off a cliff and perished a horrible, bloody death, and that someday soon the posts would return with their previous frequency.
It seems that someday soon has arrived. Theology Girl has been updating with alarming regularity over the past week. (You hear that, Adrienne? Now everyone on my blog knows about it, so you have to keep updating. How’s that for peer pressure?)
Although I had planned to take a short break from the internet, I hadn’t expected it to go on for quite as long as it has. I wish I could present a cute baby from my loins as proof that I’ve been busy with other things, but that would be a vicious lie. The truth is, I’m just plain lazy.
The good news is that almost two weeks away has given me plenty of blogging fodder. Here’s hoping I can maintain my resolve and follow through with posting the weird shit I saw last week.
I’m sure that my return to blogging after my brief hiatus, though, will be completely overshadowed by the big news that has just overloaded all the airwaves: the death of Michael Jackson.
say what?