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So I started looking for a new phone and discovered that my provider (Aliant Mobility, who is merging with Bell Mobility) no longer had any Nokia phones in their lineup, so I realized that for my fourth cell phone I would have to switch brands after having 3 different Nokia phones. I don't like flip phones, so that eliminated most of the phones, and I narrowed the brands down to LG or Motorola. The two models I was thinking about were the LG Shine (the flip one, since they don't have the slider) and the Motorola ROKR Z6m. The ROKR seemed sturdier and I really like the slider design, so that's what I went with.
It has a camera (still and video) and music-playing features. I don't think that I'll ever listen to music on it (or really watch video either), since that's what my iPod is for. I did try out some music with it and remarkably it has a standard mini plug so that you can use any headphones to listen to music. The phone also charges with a miniUSB plug, which means I can charge it from my computer or in the car with the same charger that I can use with my iPod and the transmitter for the radio, so that's a big plus. Strangely, the USB connecting doesn't let the microSD card show up on my MacBook Pro, so I need to send files back and forth via Bluetooth.
I also found out that the operating system of the phone is a variant of Linux, which is pretty cool and I was able to download and use the Gmail application for checking my mail which I couldn't use before. I also can add my own ringtones, which is very good since that ability is often deactivated on phones, so even though I don't think I'll have a long of songs for ringtones, I can customize things a bit. I'm still getting used to the interface and slightly-different key layout for text messaging, but I think that it's going to be a good phone.
I think that I came to the cell phone party a bit late. My brother held out much longer than I did and when I got my first mobile phone about 5 years ago he said, "you're one of those people now." At first I just used it for making phone calls, but then I wanted to use text messaging and I signed up for it. I was one of the first people to use it, because when I started using it, they were testing and they turned it on and I wasn't charged for it because it wasn't completely reliable yet. The first phone I had still works and it was simple, but the screen was black and white and it didn't really do Web browsing that well. It was a "bar" style phone, so it doesn't flip open or slide or do any other things like that. It just is. When I was able to upgrade I chose another Nokia phone and this one had a camera and a colour screen and an ok browser for the web. It was another "brick" style phone, but it was smaller than the previous one and all of the charging cables for the old phone still worked with it. I could send photos (or send links to photos, since my provider has things set up to keep you locked in) and check my mail and send text messages. That phone still works too and I found that I shifted to more text messages and even some blogging from it. Finally I upgraded just over a year ago to another Nokia phone (a 6275i) and it had a bigger and brighter screen, but was smaller yet again. The coolest things about it are that it can also record and play video and has a good Web browser.
For my son John's birthday I ordered a Minimum Theremin kit from Harrison Instruments. I was inspired by seeing Bre Pettis make one in the Make Weekend Project Podcast. I came and over a few days we soldered and assembled it.
It is pretty neat to get a printed circuit board and a bunch of parts and solder them together to create a unique musical instrument. In order to complete the project I bought a soldering iron and I was able to get a piece of sheet metal from my dad, who also made a wooden stand for it.
The kit has all of the parts nicely sorted into plastic baggies and is clearly labelled which made it quite easy to assemble. It's not a beginners kit, but I was patient and John and it only took a few hours to assemble since we took our time.
The Theremin is an odd instrument. You've probably heard one on the soundtrack of vintage sci-fi films or in the Beach Boys song, "Good Vibrations". The Minimum Theremin doesn't have the pitch and volume controls of a full, traditional Theremin, but only has the antenna for controlling the pitch. You stand in front of it and move your hand close to the antenna. The closer you get, the higher the pitch. I need to practise with it to get better and John is a bit better than me. At the end of this post is a 47 second recording of me playing (I just plugged the Theremin into my MacBook Pro and recorded it). I want to build some more stuff now!
It's hard to believe that this Vox thing started a year ago. While I haven't posted frequently over the last while, I'm still glad that I joined and I like how easy it is to post and share things with the world, my neighborhood and friends. Congratulations Vox on a great first year!
Audio: Share your favorite song from this summer.
Tracing the series of events that lead to things can be interesting.
A few years ago someone studied Screen Arts and I found out that they had kids and that her partner was a musician. I was able to listen to his music and Catherine made a cool music video for one of the songs as well.
The timing was perfect as it was happening just as my summer vacation was starting, so my son John and I would have our first summer adventure at the CD launch. There were camping facilities available, so I packed up the tent and our sleeping bags so we could set them up if we decided to stay. The weather was calling for rain, so I wasn't sure if we'd camp or not.
It rained on and off for the rest of the journey, so I figured that we wouldn't set up the tent.
The band started to play as everyone gathered in the studio and they went through the songs on the CD mostly in order. It was great and most people were smiling the whole time. It rained very hard outside, but as the first set ended, the rain did as well. Then after a break where people chatted, kids played, swam, and warmed up in the sauna, the fire was started to make sure that there would be a bed of coals after the second set for cooking hot dogs and marshmallows.
The trip home was uneventful except for a raccoon that crossed the road, but I saw it soon enough to slow down and avoid it. We pulled in with everyone else in the house asleep and I tucked John into bed and then slid into bed myself and fell asleep right away. All in all it was the perfect way to start the summer.
This is the time of year that I always get retrospective and a bit mushy as another group of the people that I help to learn about filmmaking are about to graduate. No more classes and just filing and wrapping things up from the past year and getting ready for the upcoming term. The other big thing is the end of year Applied Arts show that happens on the evening of the convocation ceremony (we wear gowns and fill a big theatre as everyone graduates).
A few days ago we had an awards night where graduates are given awards. We usually are at the beginning (Applied Arts shows up at the top alphabetically), so we slip out with our winners and go for a drink which is a lot of fun. This year someone said that they remembered something I told them in class two years ago when they started and as I drove home I thought again about the privilege it is to teach and spend time with interesting people every day.
I quickly did the math and figured out that over the two years of the program each person spends 65 weeks going to school. There is no choice in the program and each person spends all that time with the people that they started with (20 people each year). So I'll see them a few times each of those 65 weeks, so you end up knowing them fairly well, so seeing them go out into the world is always a bit emotional.
After working there for a few years there was the very exciting announcement of a development initiative that would result in a revitalization of the entire Community College system in Nova Scotia. The largest and most exciting part of the initiative was the building of a new campus in Dartmouth (across the harbour from Halifax, but part of the Halifax Regional Municipality). The saddest part was that the location at Bell Road would be replaced with a new high school. With the time frames of the construction it meant that there would be a two-year gap between our moving out and the new building opening, which meant that we needed to find temporary space for two years.
So now we've moved again and I've said goodbye to another location that saw two years of Screen Arts learners pass through and a number of classes and productions. Now it's a whole new beginning with a new and larger facility filled with possibilities. It's also an adjustment as I'm moving from sharing an office with the other full-time faculty member to sharing a cubicle with her in a cluster with 16 other faculty members. We're adjusting to the space, but the biggest challenge is working in an office without sunlight as the window is at the other end of the cubicle farm. So I'm hoping that this means I'll spend less time at my desk and more time out in the building which is filled with light.
One adjustment that we made the day after we moved was to subvert the headache-inducing fluorescent lights that lined the ceiling. We found a ladder and twisted the bulbs out over our cubicles and are using desk lamps, which provide a more personal and intimate feeling to the place. Now I have to figure out how to decorate and personalize my space!
But what I will miss the most about the downtown location isn't in the campus at all, but a few blocks away in The Mud Room Cafe. I first went in when one of the learners in the class mentioned that they had great coffee and breakfast bagels (a Montreal bagel toasted with egg and cheese), so I checked it out and started going in frequently. Then I got to know the people there and started getting a coffee in the morning and having my lunch there every day. As I went in every day I was able to find out more about the people who worked there and was able to share incremental conversations with them in between the bustle of the coffee shop. It was a nice place to go to get away from work and relax before going back to work, which is fun, but a bit stressful and demanding at times. I could always count on a smile, good food, darn good coffee and friendship there. I will still go in when I have a chance and through electronic means I can still stay in touch, but it's not the same as being there in person. But things can't stay the same forever and what makes things special is that they are not unlimited and we have to value the people that we meet and the stories that we share.
1. If you're out shopping and hear a baby cry, what's your first thought?
Babies. A bit of a nice sigh as I remember when my kids were babies and then it's just there.
2. Are the passengers in your car required to buckle their seat belts regardless of age?
Everyone has to buckle their seat belts. It's safer that way.
3. Do you ever feel the need to clean/straighten your loved ones? With your own spit?
I will clean them a bit, but usually I will point it out. Very rarely will I use spit to clean them.
4. Some people are described as having "a face only a mother could love." What people or things in your life do you love unconditionally?
My lovely wife, my lovely kids, my amazing mom and dad, my brother, my sister, and my dog.
5. In what ways are you like your mother? What habits, catch phrases, and tricks have you picked up from her?
I love helping people and I have lots of empathy for others.
Questions from Five on Fridays
