- @jayvert @ericsmithrocks I know I'm a little late on this, but hell yes. in reply to jayvert #
- @jayvert @ericsmithrocks I know I'm a few days behind on this, but HELL YES. in reply to jayvert #
- Good morning! Happy to be alert, awake, and on Twitter. What are you happy about today? #
- @mariatsciarrino Whoa, how is that possible? A mix of many factors, or one major factor being removed? in reply to mariatsciarrino #
- @mariatsciarrino I used to have a problem, but it was all about diet, activity, & hanging out all day in my bedroom. Now, out like a light. in reply to mariatsciarrino #
- @inflammatorywrt I have the same thing about my neck/cheeks and facelifts. in reply to inflammatorywrt #
- Love a gal w/a style guide. Can't wait! RT @ladygaga make sure when writing about my new album/project ARTPOP that you CAPITALIZE the title #
- @anniemal @mariatsciarrino High school students? Songwriters? in reply to anniemal #
- @leesafar Totally. Wish I knew more of his deep cuts, though. in reply to leesafar #
- True. RT @not_pele: Started the morning with an Aqua Teen Hunger Force reference, no doubt tickling @krisis. I think today will be awesome. #
- @amanda_nan I can't wait! May even see it in the theatre. in reply to amanda_nan #
- 1st time @ gym in weeks after I was way-too-out-of-breath singing scratch vocals for the LP last night. Feels good to put my body in motion. #
- Sounds like a pipe dream, but I'll try! RT @ibx: #ibxgamechanger I will eat a healthy breakfast every morning this wk. RT to win $100! #
- @amanda_nan haha, I think it only counts if I finish it! Working on the next chapter tonight. in reply to amanda_nan #
- @amanda_nan Definitely need a little of both – grand plans keep me moving, but all grand means days go by without smaller wins accomplished. in reply to amanda_nan #
- @amanda_nan I made my grand return to the gym! Nice to have a 45 minute accomplishment in the midst of mixing 21 songs ;) in reply to amanda_nan #
- Always amused to glimpse a Kindle over someone's shoulder when they are reading straight up smut. Lovely you can now enjoy that in public. #
- Oh, wait, maybe it's just 50 Shades of Grey… #
- @hankwasiak The Oreo social campaign has been brilliant lately. Connecting their brand to so many stories already in the public imagination. in reply to hankwasiak #
- Wow, that USA v. Canada Women's Soccer match was a crazy nail-biter! Even reading the live-blog made me tense. http://t.co/HqAUQCnY #
- Worf's parents are humans. WHAT? Was I asleep that Saturday afternoon? This puts so much into perspective. #
- @sayitrahshay Yes I got that far :) I just don't know if I buy the Klingon culture he knows & his otherness if he was brought up on Earth. in reply to sayitrahshay #
- @sayitrahshay They apparently cook lots of creepy Klingon food for him. in reply to sayitrahshay #
- Good morning! Fell asleep early last night and woke up raring to do all the things I missed doing last night. What's you're #1 to do today? #
- @McKelvie @christianmunthe Welll, I don't know about you, but MY day is going to be awesome now that I've seen that. in reply to McKelvie #
- @ajohnsru I tried that one time and had a kid kicking the back of my seat the entire red eye. Learned my lesson. in reply to ajohnsru #
- When they say have a balanced breakfast every day, I don't think they mean a menthol cigarette and a diet coke before 8am. Just saying. #
- @magaIicious Ugh. I'm a @Gillette devotee, but I'm considering dropping all the brands that leap to endorse toolbag @ryanlochte. in reply to magaIicious #
- Paralyzing and heartbreaking hack attack on journlist completely erodes his digital identity. http://t.co/TWFTfYNy #
- @cecilyk You're post was NOT rude & barely hypocritical. You can do a sponsored post and still blog from the heart instead of marketing plan in reply to Cecilyk #
- @cecilyk I've been a blogger for 12yrs now – blogging will always be a means of communication and expression, with or without monetization. in reply to Cecilyk #
- Certain I've spotted @allieharch & I in a heli-cam shot ;) RT @TheColorRun Philly EXPLODES with 26,000 Color Runners! http://t.co/mNmzb1Tq #
- @allieharch I think I see us in the overhead shot around :16; we were pretty close to the North side, I was in a white bandanna w/sunglasses in reply to allieharch #
- Worth reading for the killer infographic RT @ginidietrich What Piracy? How Hollywood & Music Industry Have It All Wrong http://t.co/LxEBRRbO #
- @jtramsay @geoffd Is there any downside to the non- buried El, aside from maintenance? It doesn't really affect traffic flow. in reply to jtramsay #
- Definitely backing gorgeous sci-fi comic @telikosprotocol before @kickstarter ends tomorrow but can't decide on a level!… #
- @mangetout Did you DL the prelude issue? Amazing! in reply to mangetout #
- Maybe I'm also getting fatter, but our washing machine also only seems to have hot water, and all of my clothes are DEFINITELY shrinking. #
- @CAwkward You are awesome and I am addicted to your blog. Reminiscing about the Vaders since excommunicated from my healthy life. #
- Time for our second overdub session on the new LP! Trying to find the right gear setup for our vocals. #
- I @Kickstarter'd Iminami http://t.co/9Pq9PEAO Amazing Philly theatre w/aerial silks, puppetry & live soundtrack. Their last show was amazing #
- @nwjerseyliz I love it! in reply to nwjerseyliz #
- @tostina Tina, my friends are making the big move to Rochester this weekend! 1st priority: they want to find good middle eastern takeout ;) in reply to tostina #
- Copy shop learns pictures are worth more than a thousand words, pays $4k for $10 photo used without permission: http://t.co/3yBQ89EV. #
- @FrankEliason @Mediabistro Yes, bc FB's edgerank has smothered all the unique content to make it the Reddit of badly photoshopped quote imgs in reply to FrankEliason #
- @BCBSIL I never look at the needle, always do deep breathing. in reply to BCBSIL #
- @zaneology Both flaws simply boggling…especially Amazon, which has little to say for its security despite its hegemonic power over ecommerce in reply to zaneology #
- @amanda_nan I was sure that was going to turn out to be a photo of an Olympic swimmer ;) in reply to amanda_nan #
- @tostina heading to their farewell dinner now, will tweet you their neighborhood ;) in reply to tostina #
- @tostina They'll be on Culver between Park and East. Taking all foodie recommendations ;) in reply to tostina #
- @yousingiwrite Considering the expense of concert tix for some of my favorite bands? Sure, I'd consider a strategically placed logo or two. in reply to yousingiwrite #
- Love that @capogiro is spinning the super-obscure Tori Amos cut "Not David Bowie," which was the inspiration of my own song "Glam." #
- @freakapotimus ACTION CASTLE! in reply to freakapotimus #
Archives for August 2012
geek
Everyone is a geek about something.
People geek about their children, cars, sports, and lawns. There are entire big box chain stores devoted to geekery in home renovation, pet care, and home electronics. You’d have to be a pretty unenthusiastic human being to live an entirely geek-free life?
So why don’t we call everyone “geek”? Or, better, why doesn’t everyone self-identify as one? Maybe because many of their geek-out pastimes are popular. They are acknowledged, mainstream pursuits. They have infrastructure and the aforementioned superstores to support them in their geekery.
I posit that it’s specificity that makes the true geek. Their great love and obsession isn’t easy to pursue. While their neighbor enjoys lawn care, they are obsessed with a specific kind of grass. While their husband loves movies, they love sub-titled action movies.
Or not. It’s not like the geek label really gets us anywhere in life, aside from finding other geeks as friends and scoring occasional “geek cred” when one of our favorite things hits the mainstream. Yet, there is something compelling about it. I proudly label myself a geek about blogging, social media, music, X-Men, and a host of other topics where I have made it a point to be the most obsessed one in any given room.
I have yet to receive my laminated geek card for all of my geekery. However, I am Philadelphia’s Geek of the Week, as determined by Geekadelphia – who are really the geeks of geekery in Philly.
Trust
I am sitting alone on the step in the small front hallway of my house, playing guitar.
A cage of microphones, stands, and cables surround my body in such a way that I can’t turn or stretch. If I drop a pick it’s lost to me. I just grab another from the tin sitting beside me and keep playing.
Gina, Zina, and Jake are less than 25 feet away – I know, because that is how long the 1/4” cable plugged into my guitar stretches. I can’t see them. We have erected a wall of cardboard boxes in the door frame that leads from our hall into the living room. Gina and I puzzled it together on Saturday while she hummed the theme to Tetris.
I can hear them. Only faintly through the boxes, but loud and clear over my massive, ear-cupping headphones. Gina chirps in a variety of accents through her control room mic, keeping me informed of the action in the other room and singing my songs on my behalf. Jake and Zina communicate via their instruments.
Every track I have ever released has been engineered, mixed, and produced by me. That means any time you have listened to me as a performer I was also busy thinking about a lot of other things, like if the mics are placed correctly or if the bridge is going to clip.
I can’t do that from this side of my wall of boxes. The control room is 25 feet away. Gina and Jake are the ones engineering my songs, and Zina is driving them. My only job is to sit on this step and play guitar the best I know how.
It was hard during my first song. I was still barking commands and telling Gina just how to cue each track. That did not last for long. It didn’t need to. If I can put my musical life in Gina’s hands, then who else can I trust?
That’s the word I keep coming back to in my tiny guitar room, stare fixed on the sideways logos on cardboard boxes as Gina cues up another track. Trust. I don’t know if I ever understood rock bands before now. I liked them and obsessed over every detail of their album credits, but I don’t know if I understood them.
Now, in my little box, I understand.
Rock bands are about trust. Every note, every rhythm and chord, is another blind fall. If you cannot trust the rest of the band to catch you it will never ring true.
I am ready to plummet through another take.