Waiting for Harry Words

Michael Smith's creation for 1708's Wearable Art Annual Spectacle in October of 2005

One of the best things about working far from home is getting email from my husband. Yeah, its great hearing his voice on the phone but the information goes through a different filter when he writes it down and sends it through the digital abyss. I knew First Friday in Richmond was going to be a doozy and once I realized today was Saturday (yeah, I am in the land that time forot...studio world...) I've been waiting and waiting...and w a i t i n g for his "report!"

He finally sat down late Saturday afternoon to write: "First Friday was crazy last night. Looked like Chelsea. Mobs of people, had to be at least 5,000 folks on Broad and the tributary streets. The glorious weather helped. Two big events; WRIR's Year Anniversary (went for first hour, Hotel X, danced, sweated, me and four women--guys stand around holding beer--Tim said they play better when I'm there); and Gallery 5's "controversial" (to the authorities) "Disrobed show," with 15 nude models on pedestals wearing nothing else much but body paint and accessories."

"One FTP board member Tiffany was the best of them, as she established yoga poses and kept a straight face looking forward. The rest seemed rather bored, though naked. The T.D. reported 400 people but that was nuts--at least 200 in the line I stood in for a half hour! My guess is they had 1,000 people go through that old fire station. Suzanne Hall said she'd been hearing all night about the nude people at "the Firehouse Theatre" which I'm just waiting for some big mix-up to occur since the Vagina Monologues was being rehearsed that evening in the theatre. Imagine it being interrupted by hipster art goers looking for nekkid art!"

"Many police and serious looking security people were in the crowd at Gallery5. It had its ABC license pulled as the show was deemed "lewd and lascivious". Owner Tom Robinson went down to court for three hours on Friday to get it reinstated.

Tim and I finally recorded our interview together. It will be broadcast on Monday at 12:30. We were goofy, but also discussed the Inner Life and the Meaning Of Theater. "

I must say, most of the time, it's worth the wait. The great thing is I can listen to Tim interviewing Harry here in Paris on Monday night here since WRIR
has a primary and secondary stream accessible from their website! That' ll be something
to look forward to. I wish I had something to record it but that has been a problem I've spent too much time exploring during the past week.

I've been an Apple user since the 80's but this whole deal with OS X and now the new Intel chip versions of everything Apple is just too much for me. It annoys the h*ll out of me that I can buy a webcam for under 20 bucks for a PC and the only webcam that OSX supports is $150. And to really stick it to us, the only way it would be worth my while to set it up would be if Harry, another Apple user, has one too. Nada. Not gonna do it. As much as we could love camming each other and monitoring the lack of progress in my atelier or the amount of cat hair collecting on his desk, we aren't spending three hundred dollars to witness this for the next three monthes. (One month is almost over!)

Yes, there are drivers out there that will make many PC designed webcams work on a mac but the software options are few and again, none of it is supported bt Apple. I find it very annoying! The only good thing that might come out of this intel chip/Apple redesign is that there may be more compatibility with hardware and games which would open up the market for Apple and create more competition. That would be a good thing. I've had it with paying "the Apple tax" just because they aren't interested in much more than selling iPods these days.

I thought HARD about getting one before I left for Paris. After a few long waits in the Apple store I realized that these expensive mp3 players break so often that there was an editorial about it in the NYTimes today! I sat at the Genius Bar in our local Apple store long enough to witness these iPods take all the tech's time because they break very easily or don't work A LOT. (parents of teens, this is a warning!!!)

Yes, they are cool looking. Yes, you can back up your friggin hard drive on one if you get the video version and have a USB 2 on your laptop... but if the thing breaks your back up is worthless!

The other thing I've been on the look out for are cheap portable speakers for my 12" laptop that don't rely on AC. I had a set I loved that I really only used when I play DVD's on my computer but I used them once here in Paris before they were fried by the current - and that was using a surve protector transformer! The Apple store at BHV doesn't seem to sell speakers that run off USB that don't need an AC cord... in the states this is more common. I've only seen one pair here at the Apple store and they were overpriced and ran off batteries which isn't acceptable. There are a ton of other speakers if I want to get a set that need to be plugged into a 210 outlet with a French plug.

Does all of this add to my studio environment? I tell myself it does. I like to listen to the radio while I work. If I am listening to French radio the clock radio here is loud enough and I can listen to Jazz all day everyday but its like being in a vaccumn since there is the language barrier. In 2004 I didn't know anything about the Tsunami until a week after it happened.

Now I can easily listen to NPR if I am SITTING in front of my computer. My laptop speakers just don't have enough power to overcome the traffic outside. Do I work without either, yes... but the internet stream off iTunes is something I really enjoy since I don't buy an actual newspaper anymore. (I swore off the IHT after they sold off the Trib - and had my pocket picked the last morning I went out to buy one...)