"Murphy was an optimist!"
Blogging lessons May 22, 2009 8:19 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Blog, Publishing , 2comments13 blogging lessons learned from Stephen King’s On Writing. Good stuff.
2commentsBlog Fading March 21, 2009 9:46 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Blog, Communications, Publishing, Technology , add a commentA favorite Knoxvillian of mine is fading from the social media spotlight. Russ McBee is ending his participating in the blogosphere, twittersphere, and socialsphere in general with the exception of the photosphere.
I’m ending this blog, effective immediately. It’s been fun (mostly), but I’m signing off, for personal reasons. I’m also deleting my accounts at Twitter and Utterli, but I’ll keep my PBase account active.
This site will remain live until either my hosting account expires or I decide to delete it on a whim, whichever comes first.
Goodbye.
I’ll preserve his final message for prosperity. And one day I want to know why PBase over Flickr.
I have enjoyed reading Russ’ blog and Tweets. His contributions shall be missed!
add a commentKnoxville Symphony Orchestra Blogger Night Success! January 16, 2009 2:18 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Blog, Music, Of Interest, Publishing , 2commentsLast year the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra tried something bold and invited 50 bloggers to come to the symphony for free in exchange for writing about their experiences good or bad. It was the KSO’s first Blogger Night. Noah and I went and really enjoyed ourselves so when Frank Murphy announced that the KSO was doing it again, I was quick to respond. I was so stressed yesterday that I almost canceled but I am glad we went! Last year 27 bloggers responded. This year 43 r.s.v.p.’d (I don’t think all 43 showed up). The KSO is already planning next year’s blogger event as one of their performers is now also a blogger.
Last year I learned that despite having an affinity for the theater and enjoying performances throughout my entire life in places like the New Orleans Saenger Theatre, The Orpheum Theatre in Memphis, The Bijou, The Tennessee Theatre, and The Clarence Brown, to name a few, I have an overwhelming lack of knowledge about orchestra. Last year I found my hands nearly slapping together at the end of a piece but stopped soundlessly when I noticed no one else in the audience clapping. Stephanie Burdette explains:
At the beginning of the concert, the concertmaster will come onstage. The audience claps as a welcome, and as a sign of appreciation to all the musicians. After the orchestra tunes, the conductor and soloist will come onstage. Everyone claps to welcome them, too. The audience doesn’t usually applaud again until the end of the piece, but this can be a little tricky because many pieces seem to end several times — they have several parts, or "movements." These will be listed in your program. Or you can just … wait until people around you begin applauding and then join in…
I was also under the impression that one dressed to the hilt for the symphony and became a little stressed when we discovered all of Noah’s dress clothes were at the grandparent’s house. Stephanie put my mind at ease:
This is usually everyone’s biggest worry, male or female. Here is the thing - there is no dress code. Anything that makes you feel comfortable is fine. Most people will be wearing business clothes or slightly dressy casual clothes, but you’ll see everything from khakis to cocktail dresses. Some people enjoy dressing up and making a special night of it, and you can, too. Still, evening gowns and tuxedos are pretty rare unless you’re attending a fancy gala.
Before the show we ran into some fellow bloggers and chatted in the hall in front of the sponsors poster. In the long list of names for the Diamond Sponsors, I could only read one - ImagePoint. That seemed both sad and ironic. Last year the entrance was crowded, had tables of cheeses and snacks, and drinks flowed from the bar. This year, the corridor seemed oddly vacant. Perhaps I arrived too early and missed the scene, or perhaps the economy has trimmed away at some tradition. The lights flashed, the chimes sounded, and we found our seats.
The symphony’s program opened with Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 3. I was surprised that it was simply 11 strings and that Lucas Richman did not come out to conduct. The piece was beautiful! At the end of that piece, the grand piano was brought onto the stage and the Maestro made his first appearance and didn’t skip a beat even though his microphone was turned off. As truly great performer, the technical faux pas did not fluster Lucas Richman and he continued to address the audience until the sound tech fixed the problem. He even acknowledged the bloggers! He left and returned with piano soloist Navah Perlman and performed Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 4. After reading Frank Murphy’s review, I realized that she played for 31 minutes without sheet music! And had a cold so the one missed note was easily forgiven. Again, it was a well-executed piece! I was so caught up in the music that time flew by. After a brief intermission we returned to find the grand piano was gone and no longer blocked our view of the energetic conductor Lucas Richman. The KSO performed Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4, "Italian" and the Maestro was so into his work that at times he would pop up on his toes as if about to jump into orchestra itself. His full body worked the direction of the score. Several times in the evening I felt as though I had slipped into Fantasia with the two most compelling moments being the first tuning of the evening and the second watching Lucas Richman conduct this Mendelssohn Symphony.
Noah appeared to enjoy the music. I think he may have been uncomfortable about his clothing. At times his finger conducted along with Richman but Noah has a time of evening when he just shuts off. We exceeded that and I wondered if the finger conducting wasn’t an attempt to stay awake. During Mendelssohn, Noah reclined in the seat and closed his eyes. He claims he stayed awake but at one point his head tilted over to me and I had to elbow him before he snored or fell out of his chair. I feared he might be heading toward a migraine. With his interest in percussion, I think Noah would have enjoyed seeing more percussionists. I was surprised that the KSO was so heavily inclined to strings. I only counted two percussionists and I am not really sure about the second. I thought I heard some brass but I had difficulty finding any winds on the stage. My instrument in middle school was the clarinet. I am a very big Pete Fountain fan and would like to see more wind instruments.
Afterwards we met the Maestro, musicians, KSO blogger Katy Gawne, KSO podcaster, and other KSO staff in a reception with wine and cheese and good laughs. I got to talk to both Lucas Richman and Navah Perlman about how much of his gesture and body movements work into conducting and Navah shared just how important the movements are to the musicians and how dramatically different one conductor can be from another. There were so many bloggers and musicians in the reception that I left feeling like I barely got to talk to anyone despite non-stop gabbing.
Stephanie Burdette shared with me information about Family Concerts. Family Concerts is a creation of Lucas Richman’s intended for children 3-8. I laughed at the thought of Evan the Terror sitting still for one hour of classical music in teh Tennessee Theater. "They are not allowed back and someone contact the contractor and see how quickly we can repair that kid’s damage!" After hearing the details, I actually think it would be perfect! After the one hour show, they have an instrument petting zoo for the children to get a closeup experience with the instruments. They also setup a room specifically for the children to do their own performance. This includes a ticket window, costumes for the appropriate jobs, a variety of toy instruments and a conducting opportunity. The children sell tickets to their show and have a blast. For people with transportation issues, I believe she was saying that busing can even be arranged. I think the family has to do this on March 26 at 9:30am!
As we left, I told Noah not to sweat my shoe. During intermission he stepped on my heel and ripped 3/4 of my sole off (I tweeted heal and soul for deeper meaning). To make sure he’d done a good job, he stepped on the same heel again as we entered the Glenn Miller room for the reception. The reception had wine, cheese and water. Noah doesn’t eat cheese and turned down the water and is not old enough for the wine. Lucas Richman’s son did not attend this year. Last year he and Noah played together and I think Noah was looking forward to that. As we left, I inquired, "Did you have a good time?" He responded, "Yes." then paused and added, "And when I threw up, I got it all in the toilet!" After recovering my chin from the floor, I confirmed Noah was okay and that I didn’t have any damage control to do. Don’t worry KSO; that’s just Noah. He was either overtired or stressed out. Nothing contagious. I asked Noah if he would want to go again and he responded yes.
The biggest thing I learned last night is that my iPod is severely in need of some classical music. My special thanks to the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra for putting on this event! We really did have a great time!
I’ll update this post later with a roundup of bloggers who attended. For additional information, listen to the Mozart-Mendelssohn podcast, Maestro Richman’s interview with pianist Navah Perlman, Read the Program Notes, Read Navah Perlman’s Biography, read the KSO blog, see pictures from last night, and subscribe to the KSO podcast. And if you like theaters, you’ll enjoy Cinema Treasures. Be sure to schedule an evening with the KSO!
2commentsWhere’s my list? January 1, 2009 9:02 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Blog, Publishing , 2commentsI toyed with getting on the bandwagon with a stats post showing all the hits and search terms and referrers used to get to Reality Me in 2008, but after looking at it, I figured out that people pretty much come here looking for information on the New Madrid fault, the RealTek 8201CL driver, and condoms.
2commentsReality Me Wordle December 30, 2008 10:46 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Blog, Publishing , add a commentWhat do I talk about here?
Why do we blog? December 18, 2008 9:40 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Blog, Publishing, Tommy , add a commentOne reason I blog is for the memories. Some trackback spam caused me to re-read my post Such an inappropriate dad and that started my day off with a smile because that picture and Tommy’s statement show he far exceeded what The They ever thought he would do. Without the blog (and the trackback spam) that memory might have faded.
add a commentPost Election November 7, 2008 8:56 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Blog, Publishing , 3commentsAccording to my stats, people don’t read blogs anymore.
3commentsWhat brings people to Reality Me? October 30, 2008 10:19 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Blog, Publishing , 2commentsToday’s list of search terms that brought people to Reality Me. Not what I’d expect. I’d say people are really confused about the Charter Amendments…and where to get condoms.
2commentsLooking forward to November 5 October 27, 2008 3:04 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Blog, Politics, Publishing, Touchy Subjects, United States , 3commentsI’ve wondered in this political season how many people who enjoyed a particular blog quit reading because of that person’s support for a particular candidate. I feel this election is very important and as such I have been very outspoken in support of Barack Obama. I hope that has not driven people away who have enjoyed Reality Me in the past. Recently, Cathy and I upset, and ran off, one reader that we assumed was passing through and making brief comments on blogs supporting Obama. We forgot that the 6 degrees of Kevin Bacon taught us that all people are closely connected. In this case, our "passing" Republican was not a troll but a quiet reader of both our blogs who delurked for a political statement. I know this because it turns out she is a friend of my brother.
So, I’m looking forward to November 5, 2008, to cut back on some of the political posts and get back to the humor in life, some tech, pictures of my children, and news of the odd.
Blogging, at least mine, is an opinionated form of publishing that may be biased and at times without objectiveness. With its world-wide reach, the potential audience for a blog is huge. As such, the odds are someone is going to be disturbed, or offended. I can only hope that spurs some interesting conversations in comments and perhaps an opportunity to meet for coffee and discuss our differences. So if the Pro-Obamaness of Reality Me has driven you nuts, let’s have some coffee together and talk something other than politics. In the meantime, check out this great video from Obama!
And this transcription of his remarks in Canton, Ohio.
3commentsI banish thee! October 24, 2008 11:10 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Blog, Publishing , 17commentsKnoxville Talks, once a hot property, has gone silent with no updates since September 8. When Katie left for Knoxnews, WBIR failed to keep the fire going for Knoxville Talks which goes to show how quickly an audience can vanish for an active site.
Knoxville Talks, I strike thee from my feed reader. Be gone!
17commentsDidn’t Make Michael’s List September 25, 2008 9:53 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Blog, Publishing , 12commentsI suck! (concisely)
Anecdotal is out. Concise clarity is in. In these days of the Internet Attention Span, if you don’t get me in one sentence - two tops - then I’m gone. [Source, No Silence Here, Some blogs I like, and why teachers should be using them]
I’m going to have to stay on the outs. One of my favorite movie quotes is "Looks like Walt Disney threw up!" That’s Burt Reynold’s character Sonny Lawson in the movie The End after trying to commit suicide by taking a fist full of colorful pills, chasing them with a glass of milk and immediately spitting the whole concoction back on the glass topped coffee table. (and no, I won’t remember your name in two weeks). I imagine that quote reflects how many people probably see Reality Me. It’s like Being John Malkovich but you are in my head. This blog is not a news blog or a tech blog; it is anecdotal! Call it a character study if you like. News, tech, politics and such slip in, and sometime dominate the landscape, but all in all, Reality Me is a collection of my insights and my adventures that I share for prosperity, your pleasure, and my fun.
Oh, and according to Technorati’s State of the Blogosphere 2008, I’m about 93,000 hits a month away from not sucking.
12commentsSonny…back in my day… September 24, 2008 9:47 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Blog, Publishing, Sex, Touchy Subjects , 2comments…if you wanted a random stranger to impregnate you, you had to at least leave the house and let him buy you a couple of beers first.
…In less than two weeks, I will be ovulating, which as everyone should know is primetime for baby making. The problem is that I don’t yet have a partner…I just need some good, hearty seed…I am 26 years old, 5′4″, 115lbs., long brown hair, well, you can see more details in the pic. I have most of a PhD in Biophysics and will be finishing my JD before the child is born… [Source, The Garage Sale Blog Network, My Biological Egg Timer is Ticking, Ticking, Ticking - Ship in a Bottle]
The skeptic in me thinks this is a great way to get some short-term, unqualified traffic to her blog. And of course, I just participated in helping her strategy work if that is the plan. Remember folks, short-term spikes in traffic does not necessarily result in fame, increased ad revenue, or long term readership; it often just causes extra cost in hosting.
2comments2/3s of the way there! September 9, 2008 11:34 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Blog, Communications, Economy, Publishing, Technology, Touchy Subjects , 4commentsI feel like a presidential candidate asking for 20 people to donate $5 each to send Cathy and Sarah to BlogHer Nashville. Some amazingly wonderful people have contributed to sending Cathy and Sarah to BlogHer! Sarah is thrilled! Cathy is so jazzed that she wants to be a panelist at BlogHer 2009. So if you are attending a BlogHer event, be sure to whisper loudly within earshot of the organizers, "Gee, I sure wish Cathy McCaughan of Domestic Psychology were speaking." Sarah and Cathy are going to come back with their blogs on fire like never before! We are a 7 person household and 6 of those people have blogs! (that doesn’t include Facebook and MySpace etc.) We are "The Family That Blogs Together." With 5 children in 5 different schools this year, such a trip would not be feasible without your help. Thank you!
4commentsNews stops where profits start September 6, 2008 10:03 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Blog, News, Of Interest, Publishing , add a commentIt almost sounds like Dan Rather is saying bloggers are the hope for future reporting.
add a commentSend the Girls to BlogHer September 5, 2008 8:46 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Blog, Communications, Publishing, Technology, Travel , 2commentsRegistration ends next week!
BlogHer has announced the desire to close registration next week. We’ve had our first contributor! We are a 7 person household and 6 of those people have blogs! (that doesn’t include Facebook and MySpace etc.) With BlogHer coming to Nashville I think Cathy and Sarah should go! I created a ChipIn to see if we could get them sponsored and two days ago we received our first contribution of $5! Awesome! Now if we can get 59 more people to do the same, the girls get to go! I think it will be some good bonding time for mom and daughter. I think they will have some great social networking opportunities with bloggers they only know in print. And I think they will come back excited to try new blogging tools, technologies and writing techniques they discover at BlogHer. Plus Barry will write snarky things about them!
Registration ends next week!
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