LI/Coney Island

Jack and I are gonna try to hit the beach this coming weekend. I've
never touched LI before. I gotta admit I would also like to see the HKNC
(Helen Keller National Center) but will save that for a different trip.

Thursday I'm spending the day with Blondie, just the two of us. We re
gonna try something new and different. We haven't hung out just to hang
out ya know. Lately since April its all WOrk WorK woRK...

The next two days will be "beausy" (pretty busy) but glad to return to
nORmAL liFe again. I'm glad to have this option of mobile blog posting.
To post my thoughts at random.

Below are some Easter Egg photos from last April 2007. I never got
around to posting em cuz it was a drag to upload to a pc then download
to blogger. Lets see if the attachment works? Anyhoo, Blondie brought an
egg dye kit. Several of us dyed eggs. I fooled around with my SK3 camera
that time. Trying to capture the "shot"

*jeopardy final question theme song*

....
"If soul may look and body touch,
Which is the more blest?"
- Yeats

Nova LoVES Prometheus!!!

Had a meeting with Rusty and Blondie today to discuss the DVD footage. For the most part Rusty was happy with the results. He liked how we took the natural approach to our signers, I give Ronnie credit for maintaining that effort during the 2 day shoot. See instead of having scripted dialogues and narrations, we just allowed our signers to converse or narrate within a assigned topic. I won't go into details but I think we're off to a dynamite beginning!

I know Rusty was disappointed we didn't use the chroma key screen. First of all, the lighting we had in the studio was fixed and limited. 2ndly from what I studied up on it, the subjects must stand at least 12 feet in front of the "Blue Screen." Lastly because we were using digital, and we only had a choice of this puny little blue backdrop, I learned that green is better when it comes to digital imagery. So unless my signers were positioned right and wearing the right kind of clothes, using the chroma key backdrop might've proved to be a disaster. I didn't want to get stuck with footage of signers in front of a blue screen which to me makes it look cheap and also makes me wonder, why was that backdrop used if it wasn't for special effects? Here's more info I copied and pasted from Wikipedia :)

Background
Blue is generally used for both weather maps and special effects because it is complementary to human skin tone. However, in many instances, green has become the favored color because digital cameras retain more detail in the green channel and it requires less light than blue. Although green and blue are the most common, any color can be used. Occasionally, a magenta background is used. With better imaging and hardware, many companies are avoiding the confusion often experienced by weather presenters, who must otherwise watch themselves on a monitor to see the image shown behind them, by lightly projecting a copy of the background image onto the blue/green screen. This allows the presenter to accurately point and look at the map without referring to monitors.

Even lighting
The most difficult part of setting up a bluescreen or greenscreen is even lighting and the avoidance of shadow, because it is ideal to have as narrow a color range as possible being replaced. A shadow would present itself as a darker color to the camera and might not register for replacement. This can sometimes be seen in low-budget or live broadcasts where the errors cannot be manually repaired. The material being used affects the quality and ease of having it evenly lit. Materials which reflect light will be far less successful than those that do not. A plastic sheet will reflect light and have a hotspot in the center which will come out as a pale area, while the edges may be darkened. A cotton sheet will absorb more light and have a more even color range. Recently a much simpler and easier way to create an evenly lit background has been developed. By using screens made from a retroreflective fabric illuminated by a ring of LEDs around the camera lens it is possible to produce very even bright blue or green backgrounds whilst only consuming around five watts of energy. Products such as Reflecmedia`s Chromatte and Litering systems enable chroma key backgrounds to be created very simply and quickly, freeing the user to concentrate on lighting the foreground creatively. The systems are extremely energy efficient and enable users to create virtual studios in areas where space and energy are at a premium.

Good info to know for the future. Now the next step is for Rusty to sort through the footage and see what we covered and what areas are left to be covered. I'd like to do one more shoot before the end of August but it probably isn't feasible. It would be about $3000 all together if he used Ronnie, me and Blondie and 5 new signers for another 2 day shoot. This time, Ronnie, I(depending if I feel pretty that day?) and Blondie would focus more on the sign database itself and let the new signers cover the areas that need to be fattened up so to speak.

Well after a week of self imposed bed rest, ok the fever made me sleepy too, but anyhoo its nice to finally feel somewhat back to normal. A week ago today, I thought I would die, I was so miserable, couldn't hold food or liquid down, it was bad!

Chicago is on hold. Both Jack and I realize it would be too soon to try to move there this fall. He just started a job he really likes, and I only recently started to change my focus from teaching ASL only to just teaching. Meaning the 20+ resumes I've sent out today were in different areas of education from pre-school programs all the way to University level programs. As far as I'm concerned, its who offers what pay and what benefits is all that matters to me now. I've completed my coursework in my Masters studies, I have been teaching for the past 8 years in several areas so I am only missing is my student teaching classes/intern and my thesis. When I find a HS job that I can teach ASL and be paid for it, I will finish my Masters but I am not gonna stress myself out over it anymore. I have been living and breathing ASL for the past 3 years, I could use a break.

I would like to visit Chicago later this fall just to see what the city is like before I even start planning the move if we move? After my Sweets, Jack arrives home, and we visit some. I am gonna edit some tonight. I am being more disciplined when it comes to my film work. I can't let the lack of a videocamera get my spirits down.

I honestly think I got sick because I was so stressed about finding a FT ASL job this fall, making ends meet, dealing with issues with Jack (nothing serious, things are quite good between us actually!), not having a camera, not feeling confident with what was to be done for the DVD shoot itself (the script I had to work with, left me feeling very despaired). But now after a week of bedrest and healing, Jack and I have starting using the "we" mode. I hadn't been in that mode since my ex and I broke up. I wasn't in that mode the 1st year Jack and I have been dating. Only recently in the past week or so, it hit me, I love him and I want to spend the rest of my life with him. It was unexpected because I didn't think I had it in me, to have another real relationship. But I do. We're joking a lot more, he's getting used to my highs and lows of the day. I've been told I change moods often, hence "deafening chameleon" fits accordingly. He knows how to guage my moods now and based on how much rest I get, and how much work I am doing. Its weird having someone love me enough to bother to get to know me. My ex never did that, I appreciate that a lot about Jack.

Kidney Diet

Is one you don't want to try, trust me. I recently in the last week and a half came down with a RAGING! kidney infection. I had no idea, see the week before I experience a surge in frequency in peeing a lot and nothing burned so figured, its near my period, probably just water retention. Then last week NO appetite at ALL. Nothing tasted right and I just couldn't enjoy the food or would start eating only to lose interest in the food itself. Then my period came, it was the worse! I thought if it wasn't for my jeans my guts, insides would pour out. Horrible. I assumed once it ended I would no longer have this sharp pain in my right side, near my rib cage....

Not true.... it ended with me going to the ER Sunday night with a fever and I was a mess! I couldn't get comfortable. I couldn't even enjoy tv or anything and I was sleeping the weekend away. In the ER, I was told it could be either my gallbladder or my kidneys. They asked me for symptoms of a UTI. I said only having to pee a little more often two weeks ago was it tops. No way did I even think an UTI! But it was and it led to a bad kidney infection called, Pyelonephritis. Pyelonephritis is an infection of the kidney and the ducts that carry urine away from the kidney (ureters). Basically if left untreated, can cause Renal failure, ie; Death. So while I'm withering on a cot, groaning because of the fever, next to me was a woman who was being treated for her heart and ironically I saw her wristband and she shared my birthday, August 10th. Only she was 1956, me 1974 :) Jack was NOT happy with the hospital staff. He tried to get them to help me and finally after an IV and lots of blood work, urine sample etc etc I had a sonogram which confirmed it was my kidney that was infected and the swelling was causing the pain in my side. I didn't care, I wanted to just sleep but was being woken up every hour or so. Then they gave me antibiotic through the IV, finally at 4am, we left and headed home.

Early Monday morning, I hurled 5 times, and I hadn't eaten anything in several days so you can imagine it wasn't pretty. I couldn't hold water or aspirin down for my fever. That night I took my 1st pill form of the antibiotic only to spend tuesday throwing up, the orange juice I had and I tried to shower but it was a challenge not to puke and keep myself standing upright. Tuesday night I took half of the dosage. I declared to Jack I wasn't gonna spend another day throwing up. And I didn't. I also started to make sure when I take it now to take it with water.

Wednesday was my first day vomit and fever free day. I just kind of slumped around my apartment which now seems like a personal hell or prison.I had spent most of the weekend home because I wasn't feeling well and it only got worse. So Jack was gone during the day (wednesday), he needed to take care of things and besides he spent all day Sunday, Monday and Tuesday with me. I think my caretaker needed a break. I was all depressed, no work, no energy, no internet, and I have seen all my vhs/dvds a million times!

Today I got to join the land of the living. Jack drove me to NYU area so I could meet a tutoring student from 2 to 4pm. I decided to take the train home so I could stop at Zabbars and grab dinner. It ended up Jack, picked me up from the UWS and we came home and had a nice meal for the first time in weeks for me personally. I still can't eat a lot. By the time dinner was done, I knew I was spent for the day.

I have never ever experienced the ache of a fever like that, I have only gotten fevers a few times in my entire life and it made me want to die, combined with the pain, lack of appetite and topped off with a nice few days of vomitting. I have a new found empanthy for anyone who ever goes through a bad kidney infection. Its the worse. Now I've sworn to Jack if I so much as pee one too many times, I am not walking but running to the doc for an unrinary analysis of my PEE!~

“I hope for nothing. I fear nothing. I am free.”

-Nikos Kazantzakis

We just wrapped up the 3 day shoot of the Rosen Project!!! I am so glad to be done, it was a LONG weekend with little shuteye for moi. As usual I couldnt sleep because whenever I am doing a film project, I am always more anxious and it makes it harder to sleep.

Everyone that Ronnie, Blondie and I worked with were terrific. Cool-B really nailed his narrations, same goes for King. Frazier added the much needed comic relief and Rivera was easy to work with as well. I finally met Rivera yesterday, we had seen one another on Gallaudet Campus in the past but ran in different circles. Nice guy.

Ronnie left at 4pm to return to Maine. She really saved our asses because of her strong linguistic background as well as her ability to understand Rusty's ambigious instructions or visions. She was the primary director, I was the camera-lady. I didn't mind because operating the lights and camera kept me on my feet a lot as well as smaller tasks, such as paperwork, recording who did what, etc etc...

Gawd I am so tired. Last week I had an interview at a national tv studio for ASL translation and instruction for one of the actresses on the show. I was asked to go back on Friday afternoon and from 4-5 I met with this actress and taught her basic signs for simple phrases like Thank you, What's wrong?, Father/Mother (other family related signs). She only has three lines she has to sign for Mondays shoot which is tmw. Her character on the show is supposendly has a deaf father who she's estranged from. I don't know whether or not I will be asked to return on Monday for the shoot itself. The actress seemed to really want me there. She was a quick study and unfortunately the script calls for Sim-Com (stimulataneous communication, ie spoken English/PSE). I don't know if this will lead to more work down the road or if it was a 1 time deal? Once I know more, I will give the name of the show and actress as well as the air date. But for now, prefer not to get myself in trouble with this studio.

I also acquired two new tutoring gigs. One is with a woman who is visiting from California for 1 month and is trying to enter the theatre interpreting program. I am helping her with her song from the Broadway show Rent. The other tutoring job involves a 5 year old and a 7 year old, as well as their baby sister who's a little over a year old.

Well I recieved the results of my CST exam. NO, I didn't pass :( This time I missed it by a lousy friggin 4 points! You all should've seen the look on my face when I opened the email with the result. It was a low blow for me this past week. Really has me thinking if NYC is a viable option anymore? I must consider other locations or cities now. I am tired of the barely getting by mode I've been in since I moved from MD. I know I could get a job probably somewhere in LI, but I don't want to live there. And frankly I've touched the main locations where people teach ASL, I've explored Manhattan, Queens and a little of Brooklyn. I love my friends here but thats not enough of a reason to stay when its no longer affordable. I know if I had to move somewhere else cheaper but in NYC. I would not be happy. I want a fresh start. Jack and I will meet later this week and discuss locations. He too is feeling tired of NYC. Afterall he was born and raised here. He has been wanting to get an apartment that actually has some space, a balcony, a parking lot/garage, a washer/dryer etc etc.. I've already told him of 1 city (Chicago) I am interested in, but he wants to do some research and find out the cost of living, salary incomes. Me, I am more interested in being in a new city I've never been to rather than Philly, Boston, DC, LA, NYC. And an urban setting with EXCELLENT public transportation. I don't wanna be in a situation that forces me to have a car, no sireee!

This is why we need to think

before we throw away things!

I saw this photo on Keri's blog and I had to copy it here. Next time think twice before throwing away anything plastic! This just about breaks my heart. How destructive we humans really are! We just don't get it, do we? How our actions have consquences, long lasting ones....

You speak so well...

How many times has a deafie been praised on their "hearing" like speech abilities? Why if I had a nickel for every time I was told I sounded like a hearie only with a slight... lisp...or..speech impediment? Why I'd be living in Soho! Truddy Suggs tells it like it is with Speak Up! Well, Maybe Not. One of the things that impressed me with Jack on my 1st date with him over sushi for lunch was his bluntness when I asked, "do I sound like a deaf person?" and without batting an eyelid, he replied "oh yeah you sure do." There was no sugar coating it, no placating my feelings but the simple truth. I'm deaf, therefore I speak like one. To this day my boyfriend doesn't understand why hearies feel the need to lie to us about our speaking ability. What does it achieve other than a false sense of conformity that doesn't exist any where else outside of the speech pathologist's office or special ed class ? In the real world I have seen my friends try to say what they mean only to have me intervene and say it for them. And even then there are no guarentees that I may have to then go to the next chain of command, from a deafie to a hoh, then a hoh to a hearie to get the message across. Jack has seen me at times speak and get annoyed when I am not understood because frankly it doesnt happen often. I do not consider this a bragging right but simply the fact that even I, known for my prowness among the hearies at times cannot be understood any better than any other deafie. I feel like the next time I get the whole "You speak so well..." like I'm a circus animal, I want to reply "if only you signed as well as I speak..." but thats the meanie in me tired of being an "inspiration" or whatever it is that makes the folks pat themselves on the back.

Been dealing with major allergies. All because I am a such a miser at times. While I was in Maine one day, I remember something flew up my right nostril *I kid you not* and from then on I tried to sneeze it out but never did. I don't know what it was, a loose pollen particle? Who knows but when I returned to NYC, my head rang and made me light headed. The same kind you get when you blow up too many balloons at once. Then last week it was all post-nasal drip, with a major sore throat that finally, after Baba talked some sense into me, I went to the doctor on Monday with Jack and it turns out that I either had a severe allergic reaction to whatever made its way up into my sinuses in Maine or I have some kind of viral infection. Either way I was given 3 rxs and within 12 hours I could "see clearly now that the rain has washed away..." or in my case the decongestant made life bearable once more. Argh there's a fine line between uncomfortable and plain outright suffering. I was SUFFERING just because I didn't want to shell out the money but in the end it cost me because I was in such bad shape I couldn't teach my class on Monday night cuz I was so miserable. Lesson learn! Deal with the doc fees and move on.

It rained here for the 4th of July. No biggie cuz Jack and I caught the Lancaster fireworks last Sunday night before we returned to NYC. Man they were amazing. I love NYC in every way but no way do their fireworks compare to mine back home. But I would easily give up good fireworks for NYC any day.

Well my ad on CL for ASL tutoring paid off. Got contacted for two jobs, 1 would be a private tutoring for 2 sisters who have a deaf cousin. The other is an ASL master for a play being performed later this month. Yay!

My birthday is about a month away and already I've been asking Jack, what are we gonna do? What are you gonna get me for my birthday? He just smiles and says its too soon, I only start thinking about it 4 weeks away. I explained my birthday gear goes to full throttle 3 months prior to the event. Don't ask me why, I am just a BIG KID! I've decided since my bday is on a Friday I would like for him to take me out to a private dinner, just the two of us. Then meet up with friends for drinks and dancing somewhere else. This way I get the best of both worlds. I already know which dress I'm gonna wear. Just need the neckline altered and I'm set. Man double digits this year!

A two week summary :)

Man life has flew by literally. I miss blogging, sure do but not having access to the internet on a regular basis makes it harder. Perhaps I should try to blog every day via email. Then when I do have access to the internet, I can copy and paste. Not sure if I can manipulate the posting date so it remains in chronicalogical order??

The trip to Maine was WONDERFUL. I'm gonna break this down by day to day...

Thursday Night

My flight out of LaGuardia was delayed by an hour and a half but the flight itself went by very quickly. The flight attendant on this small charter plane was so nerdy, the kind that Seymour Phillips characters usually play. I didn't have my hearing aid on and was using air plane plugs for my ears. The landing bit always hurts my ears a lot, and no amount of gum chewing is gonna change that! On a side note, if I fly up there again I think ill get roundtrip tickets as it couldn't be much more than one way. Ronnie met me at the airport sans the baby. Her dad, Paul Bunyan was watching her son and the babys father, Doogie was at work. (See Ronnies Dad Paul Bunyan used to call her bf "Doogie Howser" from the TV show cuz he's this skinny white guy, tall and lanky and works at a hospital as a surgeon tech assistant). We caught up and yakked a mile a minute. Once we arrived at her new house there was this baby fast asleep on Mr. Bunyans chest/stomach area. Then Ronnie picked up her son and it hit me. Ronnies a mommy now. It weirded me out BIG time for about 10 to 15 mins, but then it went away and I see Ronnie now with Peanuts as if it couldn't be any other way. Amazingly how quickly we adapt to new circumstances, especially pleasant ones such as this. We talked some more and then went to bed.

Friday


I was a lazy mofo. I admit I wanted to be able to read, hang out and get used to being in a different environment. I loved the room I stayed in because I could look out the window and see the trees, woods, and a fire pit. LOVED it, realize how much I miss nature and my old house where I grew up. The kitchen had a large window that faced the woods by my house. I think if I ever do buy a house I would want it to be in a woodsy area BUT within driving distance to a city. Granted I need sunlight but open fields like where Baba lives now doesn't cut it for me. Her house understandly I like a lot more than the old house but the view... anyhoo I rested about during the day.

Then around 6pm, it was suppose to start at 5 (but hell its Friday, who goes anywhere at 5pm?) deafies began to trickle in and by 7pm we began our lesson in Sushi making. Meanwhile Ronnie had made this into a friendly competition among the attendees. We were paired up. My partner was Josh.

As you can see, he's the life of the party. Pure ASL, deaf institute background. It was interesting to see the variation between the ASL signers and strong oralism influences within the group as a whole. There were 3 catagories for us to compete in1- best looking/appearance2- best tasting3- most creative via ingredients used within the roll? We conjured the "JJ Roll"

Daniel here was the Sage, and we all watched, with me jumping around the room snapping pictures. Hell if I can't film, let me shoot! So I shot away.

It was a good party! Near the end Richardson arrived. I wasn't sure if she would remember me as I was her peer advisor at MSSD when she was a freshmen in my dorm wing, along with Szymanski. She was a petit kid, very small, turns out she's very Italian and Irish ;) which would explain her tremendous vibrance out of such a small figure! She walked in and said hello to everyone, then looked at me, where I sat anxiously wondering if I would get? A blank stare, who the heck are you? Or a look of remembrance?She looked at me and for a split second I thought, man she doesn't know me. I signed "do you remember me?" Then her face broke out into a warm smile and she signed "hi JP (my old sign name fyi no longer in use) ofc I remember you!" and that was that. I got to know her a lot more as a person and as an adult over the weekend. She's a great person dealing with her own deck of cards dealt to her. I like her, still spunky.

Saturday

We went to Mister Eagle's party. Mister Eagle rocks. I met him 3 years ago thru Ronnie. We've always gotten along famously. Lots of new faces at the party. Lots of food, yay! Me is the happy, home made food is not something a New Yorker comes across very often ;) deviled eggs, casseroles, chips, veggies and dips and so on. I noshed all day we were there. Even had Ronnies famouse Moose Chilli, delish! Gawd I'm slightly salivating as I write. I just remind myself not to eat too much and be like the Europeans. Eat within moderations but also enjoy the food and the company you're with.

Im hooked on the art of Bocce. So anyways Doogie was in charge of setting up a Bocce Tourney. I drew the tourney map and got people to sign up. Just when I didn't think I get enough people to sign up, I ran out of space and ended up making the chart go from 8 teams to 16 teams! I really enjoyed learning how to play Bocce. I even later helped ref other teams playing their rounds and keeping score. Bocce rules!

Sunday


Fathers day. Imagine to my surprise waking up to a strobe alarm blaring, blinking away. Felt like I was back at MSSD dorms! Turns out Ronnie was making pancakses but some smoke from the pan made a sensitive fire alarm repeatedly go off. Peanuts didn't enjoy the alarm much. I stumbled over to breakfast barely awake and ended up going back to bed. Sundway was mostly hanging out. We did touch a goodwill that I brought some tees from, whee! That night on TNT or TBS they were having a Clint Eastwood movie-thon. Mr Buynyan and I watched "Heartbreak Ridge" it was pretty good actually.

Monday


Ronnie, Peanuts and I left to return to NYC. The drive back down went just fine. Hit a little traffic here and there, nothing major. That night Jack and Szymanski came by. Jack and I had a dumbass fight and I realize I was nitpicking the small stuff instead of sticking to what was bothering me. Once that became apparent I resolved to do what Blondie once said to me many years ago "Pick ur battles wisely". She's right. If you find yourself bugging over little stuff its probably a good idea to step back and think about what's really bothering you? So without going into details I apologize to Jack for blowing the small stuff into major arguments. And he too understood I was frusturated by the issue itself.

Tuesday


I had to work in the Bronxs but that night was A LOT of fun. We had a small party for Ronnie. Nutter, King, Szymanski, Joe Joy, Knob, Blondie all made it over to my place. Where I had lots of good food to nosh on. The veggies and fruits, plus the bread and olive oil were a smash! We had a wonderful time. Later on the Mothmen also stopped by for a short visit.

Wednesday


Ronnie got to meet up with Rusty and Blondie to discuss the Rosen Project. We agreed to do the DVD shoot in the middle of July. Finally, a laid out plan!

I brought a Bocce set last weekend so Jack and I could play. We went to the Bronxs for Greek food and then hit Target off of 225th street. Then on Sunday I met up with my friend Martin and Jane Q for the Gay/Lesbian parade. That night Jack met up with me and we played Bocce. Jack wasn't too terribly impress but he was a good sport about it.

All week I had been feeling very lethargic, then this weekend I went to PA.. I hadn't seen my folks in a few months and I needed the break. I ended up with a small cold/sinus infection that began the week before which would explain my low energy levels lately. See my allergies sometimes causes my head to ring and I didn't realize this was also the sign of a sinus infection till the post nasal drip became problematic and the sore throat developed. So Baba and Jack and I spent most of the visit at home, watching tv/movies, eating good food and Jack worked on his BMW too. He had order new interior strips for his car. Looked great and he also upgraded the angel eyes on the headlights. There's something sexy about a man who can fixs his own car. Its something to see him tinkering with all these wires. I'm glad Jacks a reniassance type of man. He's not afraid of hard work. That's one of the reasons why I love him! We also played some more Bocce outside Baba's house. Afterwards once it got dark, we sat in the grass, chatting and watching the fireflies. Something neither of us had done in years. I think he's starting to like the game Bocce, see see? We also played a little Jenga indoors when my energy was low. Jenga is an easy game for people of all ages.