Hey! Do you remember this old thing?
Well, for those who have been following me, it's back! I'm now under a new webhost and as a result, I have a new domain name which you can visit at www.vincerostkowski.com! Though, since the first time I published, I have run into a technical snafu that causes iWeb to crash when I attempt to update, but it should be cleared up in no time.
"And we're back!"
Nine years. I can't believe it. Thursday marked the ninth annual Freddy Awards. To remain canon to the previous eight years, I was lucky enough to once again be involved. For this year's Freddys I served as a production assistant and helped control the flow of student performers and award recipients into and out of the theatre throughout the telecast. That night a few people asked me if I was working and I explained my position. Almost everyone who asked followed up with, "I bet you're having fun"; a hint of sarcasm tingling in their voice, to which I would retort, donning a smile, "Hey, as long as I'm here, I'm happy." It really was a great night, not to mention I got to work alongside a bunch of Freddy alumni, which was also a wonderful experience. It's a comfort to know that there are others in my generation that have a vested interest in something that is so important to the arts. I cannot wait until next year when the event we have started calling "Fred X" occurs. I cannot fathom what will happen in lieu of the ten year anniversary; all I know is I need to be involved.
 |
| Freddy Alums at the 2011 Freddy Awards! |
My trip to the local chain bookstore today proved to be very fruitful. I spent a good while wandering the aisles, just perusing. So much literature. So much print. So many topics. So many thoughts, ideas documented, and here I sit, staring blankly at a screen in an empty house throughout which three dogs lazily lounge. I wonder if this is what real writers do. Mind wandering, constructing work in segments, piecing them together as you go.But I digress.
I eventually settled on three books:
- Essential Dictionary of Music Notation
- Merriam Webster's Rhyming Dictionary
Obviously, the first two are very applicable to what I do, but the latter I found intriguing for a few reasons, other than being quite visually stunning. It is a very collaborative work, in that it has a whopping seven illustrators. Each tale featured within are stylistically different because each has a different illustrator. I chose this because being pretty new to graphic novels I am trying to branch out a bit.
As somewhat of a final thought, I want to let you in on a bit of a secret. I love film, whether it be television or a motion picture. That is not the secret. The secret is that, if what I am watching really appeals to me or is very relatable to me in some respect, or even if the work is just very profound and/or visually stunning I find that it can have an immense impact on my demeanor, not just in my head, but physically. So if the piece is particularly sad or uplifting for example, I may result in feeling sad or uplifted for a time afterward. Now that is not to say that if I go to see, say, a superhero film that is very well done I walk out of the theatre thinking I possess the power of super strength or what have you. What I mean is that I gauge television or film quality based on how connected I am to it. That is also not to say that if I don't feel connected to a piece that it is garbage or that it has no value. All art forms have value, even if they are the slightest bit lackluster. Artistically speaking, everything has value.
Sidenote: I should have numbered each segment in the order I wrote them; you'd get a taste of how crazily scattered the creative aspect of my mind is.
One for love. Love for all.
Vince
P.S. - I highly recommend the card game Dominion; well worth the thirty-ish dollars it sells for.
P.P.S. - Is it weird to want to own/drive a hearse?
Things I did while writing this blog:
- Watched Disc 4 of Season 2 of Six Feet Under
- Downloaded the Dominion app for my iPod
- Organized my book collection
- Finding a bargain for ordering Dominion online
- Wonder what I should eat today
------------------------------------------------------------------
Heh. You're mind is to say the least, interesting. :P I'd say no different than any other writer, in that it's no where near the same as any mind it's next to. haha.
ReplyDeleteYou're devotion to the Freddys is very admirable. Long live the Arts!
...Dominion? Sounds like good times, I'll have to check it out.
I love how you added the things you did while writing the blog. I'd be amazed at everything I "accomplished" while supposedly trying to finish something else. Oh how our minds wander.
...and I advise against the hearse...perhaps it's just me. heehee :P