Further to my last post, here’s the video short I produced, after significant distillation:
Category Archives: Music
Music to the Rescue!
The third weekly challenge in the "Creativity: Music to My Ears" MOOC I'm taking was to brainstorm and document a series of 100+ ideas as to how music might address some social or personal problem. I chose to do so around the theme of "Make Congress Work Better." You can download a full-size PDF here: Download Make Congress Work Better), and view an image below:
Foggy Morning, Vintage Gardel
One rainy day in Maui, not very long ago, I found myself huddled (in Hawaii… huddled?) in a pool side cabana, reading Jimmy Buffett's A Salty Piece of Land. At one point in the story his character is entertained on an old sailboat, captained by a woman of similar vintage. Over and over she played a scratchy 78 recording of Carlos Gardel, who the story reveals as a French-born Argentine singer of the early 20th century, best known for music to tango by.
Well, I hadn't heard of Gardel at the time, but was curious and equipped to learn… having set up a WiFi access point in my room, only about 75 meters above, and with a laptop at my side. Five minutes later, I had read his Wikipedia biography, ten minutes after that had the story's album downloaded from ITunes, and moments later was able to continue with my reading to just the right soundtrack on my IPod.
Since then, Gardel's music has become something of a favorite, played often, softly, on certain mornings, at our home in Carmel Valley. Today was one of those mornings.
Sitting at the window, once again reading (Business Model Generation this time), occasionally turning to gaze out on the foggy scene all around, I decided to pick up where I left off in my earlier impromptu digital melding of things old and new. There's an App for that, actually several…
I downloaded Super 8™ ,an App that mimics an old home movie camera, onto my IPhone, shot a simple roving walk-around, uploaded it (via ITunes) onto my Mac, edited it with IMovie, adding that Gardel soundtrack captured years earlier, uploaded the result to Vimeo, and embedded the result into this post to share with you here… all in less time than it's taking for the fog to clear from the valley below…
Foggy Morning in Carmel Valley from Richard Edward Bravman on Vimeo.
Catching Up
Sunday afternoon, late, dusk. Time for a bit of catch-up on the past week's goings on, (during which I did more living than blogging). I'll do it summary style this time:
Next phase of career coming into focus. Most likely trajectory will find me rejoining old friends on a new mission, to help lead the transformation of a grand old company into a compelling new one. On final approach; ETA two or three weeks.
Visit through NYC terrific…
Began with crafty cab driver whose very purpose for living was to gain a car's length advantage over adversaries at every possible opening, real or imagined. Drivers of vehicles many times our size were left cowering.
Continued as we checked into favorite UES haunt, to hearty greetings, personal touches and postcard views.
Warmed further by smiles of mutual recognition exchanged with a piano man of long acquaintance.
Have a listen…
Further still by the visit of fellow with whom I shared a very noisy foxhole during the SBL campaign, and by the sage advice he shared.
Further yet as we retired to a magical place to wine, dine and be entertained by a showman more people should know.
After good byes, a nightcap with accompaniment by the evening's third entertainer.
Pause for sleep.
Morning brought coffee, fresh berries and the NYT, all blessedly late.
Haircut and shave (indulgence, served over the good natured banter of 40 year veteran barbers of Italian descent), then productive conference call.
Upside of being "in transition": you can find yourself DONE at 11:45. I was.
Walked uptown, bought a couple of books. Downtown, some tea, a couple of tea sets (for east coast digs).
After channeling The Thin Man for a bit, decided to take my camera for a walk in the Park. Results were satisfying.
Piano man again. Gave him one of two books I purchased (the one about Pops). He gave it back, asking for dedication. I complied.
Dinner at another "local". Al Roker and guest just off to my left. (Saw Matt Lauer earlier.) Season's first truffles (over scrambled eggs).
Secured rented transportation on Thanksgiving morn, and headed east, bulging with luggage.
Met at former family estate by young man who, in my estimation, is the best son a father could have.
TDay Dinner with all the fixings at a golf club that gets it right every year, (and where I may actually get to play a round next year!)
Son's TDay+ party provisioned by mom. Off he went by sea and land, into enemy territory (MA).
Saturday: up early, bio-reading, tea. A bit of seaside photojournalism. Meeting with a small, talented team looking to turn adversity (being laid off) into opportunity (a promising start-up idea). I may have helped, a little.
Woke early again today. Rose quietly, tip-toeing so as not to wake Ellie. Descending stairs, noticed I must have left lights on last night. No. Ellie was sipping coffee, watching old movie.
More tea.
Browsed online instantiations of old media (there really IS a way forward; don't they see it?). Came across article on HDR photography. Bought HDR software (impulse indulgence). As it downloaded, received Google Wave invite. What to do? One tab for each, I multi-tasked for an hour or so.
Still early, I asked Ellie if she would like a road trip. Nods later, off we went. Sag Harbor. The American Hotel. Bloody Mary, Paté, Lobster BLT, HDR experiments….. double espresso, home.
That's pretty much it. Later.