November 2008

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Christianity and Faith
The Other Half Of Writing.
11.12.08 | Permalink | 8 Comments |

I’m working on a script for our spring drama at ALC , and it has been an interesting process. As many of you know, I design visual presentations for a living - mostly for lawyers. While I enjoy working in that medium, I have always liked writing. More accurately, I like to “have written” more than I actually like the process of writing. At least that’s the case right now - with a few exceptions.

When it comes to graphics and multimedia, I have years of tricks, techniques and experience from which to draw. I can do something half decent without much effort. But while I have been writing in short bursts for many years (eg. skits, short sketches, etc.) - I have not written anything this lengthy. I really don’t have any tricks to fall back on when writing something like this, so it is definitely work. I have to get in a zone in order to focus enough to be coherent - usually with some Beck or Coldplay running in the background. I am learning a lot about the process, and the further I get into it, the more I think I’m starting to enjoy the actual writing. The challenge is keeping my mind focused enough to keep the story flowing properly. I am trying to use tools that can assist with organizing my thoughts. For example, I’ve been trying some mind-mapping software with limited success. As a visual thinker, I see the scenes in my head as they are to be performed on stage, but without a cohesive plot line, they are just a series of scenes. So, I determined that the best way for me to work is to write the scenes as I see them - in no particular order, then add hooks to connect everything. That’s seeming to work, but I think I will be able to do that most effectively once I have all the scenes written. I still have a few to go.

I am also interested in the idea of adding multimedia to the show. I am writing the script to integrate video, music and lights. We have a programmable lighting system and nice big video screens that will add a cool component. I am hoping to use video as another cast member - which could be cool. It will be nice to be able to add to the story with these familiar tools.

I hope to be done with the script this week. If anyone is going to be in the Plano, TX area in March, please drop by ALC and check out the performance. Stay tuned for specific dates.
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Christianity and Faith
Election Fatigue
11.01.08 | Permalink | 5 Comments |

So after taking a few online tests to see where I fall on the issues, I’ve learned that I am a bit of an anarchist. Those of you that know me, and think that I lean liberal, might be surprised to hear that. As such, I don’t really want the federal government to control anything. But how can this be? How could I argue for big government one minute, then no government the next? The fact is - I have never wanted big government. But I get so freakin’ irritated at the attitudes of those on both sides, that I end up - in typical fashion - playing devil’s advocate to the arguments that annoy me the most. And until recently, I have been most annoyed with the Republicans and their moral superiority complex. But lately, I have to admit that Barack Obama hit a nerve with his “spread the wealth” tax speeches. I don’t think I’ll ever be convinced that anything other than a flat tax is fair. You want the rich to pay more? Great! That’s the beauty of percentages - they do pay more.

Very early in this election season, I was a bit of a Ron Paul supporter. I have another friend (an Obama supporter) who also said back then that she might consider voting for Ron Paul. It’s interesting to see how a few key issues can take someone from being supposedly left wing to extreme right wing - yet they would never consider voting Republican … supposedly somewhere between the two.

I’m not looking to get in a debate based on this post - really. I understand the arguments from both major parties, and I’m really sick of hearing them. But I believe that I may have found a party that I can get behind. Turns out, I may have been a Liberatarian all this time, and I just couldn’t see it. It’s not quite anarchy, but it’s pretty dang close. I know - it just transfers control to the state, but it goes a long way toward getting the government to leave me alone. Plus, they don’t care who marries who, whether I have a gun or not, and while they (supposedly) care about the environment - they think the federal government would just screw up any efforts to preserve it. They are against censorship, they are essential pro-choice (that’s a toughy), and they care about privacy. All of that sounds pretty good to me.

So what do I do now? Do I “throw away my vote”, and vote Liberatarian - or do I try my best to overlook my problems with the two major parties and cast my vote in one of those two directions?

I guess I’d better hurry and figure that out.
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