A DAS Ramble of Sorts

One thing that has come out of these various Digital Audio classes, is an unwavering ability to confuse the Apple techies stationed at London's Best Buy. I know it's probably not what my teacher had in mind when he started teaching the course, but I don't think he expects any less of me.

However, in spite of my unerring ability to screw myself over ad naseaum, I do have some sense of self- preservation and so, I know when my attention is required in classes...generally.

I've recently been down to the school's recording studio…Notes and visuals in class do little to teach you how to actually use the equipment or set up a talk-back mic, which I have attempted to do on several occasions, and succeeded only thrice.

Then there is the audio. Something that I am constantly worrying about, is my lack of musical talent.

“Hello and welcome to the audio and music-based recording class! Go record yourself playing music!!” :)

Crud.

Question:

How do you mic a tissue box guitar?

Because honestly, that is the only thing I can ever hope to play with the amount of musical ability that I possess.

Being deaf in one ear doesn't help very much either.

“Today we're panning audio!”

I guess if I don't hear it in my left than it's panned hard right. You cannot imagine the breakdowns I went through when we did soundscapes. D:

Hmm…

Let’s take a slight detour for a moment, and learn yet another thing about me.

If I’m not interested, and see no point in listening, I usually don’t. Something my younger brother and I have in common, I guess. But I realized something today when I left that abnormally freezing classroom and lesson of advanced stereo mic’ing behind, I’m actually learning. And, I’m learning because I’m listening, and I’m listening because I’m interested.

I guess my point is that, despite me finding this class difficult, I’m still in it, even though I’m constantly failing to do something properly, I’m still trying, and I’m doing it because, well…I guess I like the challenge.

Honestly, I’m never going to work in a recording studio or be a professional in this field, but I get my own small satisfaction when my teacher says something and I actually understand it, or when I manage to finish a half-decent project in ProTools. I have a passion for editing and recording, that’s why I’m so involved in film. And a lot of aspects in audio recording walk hand-in-hand with film production, so that’s probably why I’m so into it at the moment.

I’m also in a video editing class this semester, but it’s a bit of a drag due to the fact that there are no set projects, no rubrics, and I don’t think my teacher knows what he’s doing. There’s structure in my Digital Audio Studies class but there’s still that creative freedom that I love. I don’t know, I guess I just appreciate it. It’s about time there was structure somewhere in my life, haha.

Rambling over.

Conclusion: Dedicated teachers make dedicated students J

-MegaTron Out.

The Self-Justification of a Self-Diagnosed Insane Student

Sometimes I like to sit back and analyze the situations I'm in. I think about it for a while, take a deep breath and say, “MegaTron, Why the heck are you such a hypocrite?” Honestly, if I could answer that question with a simple answer I would, but human beings are far more complex then that aren't they?

I'm aware of the fact that no one reads this blog, and that everyone who stumbles upon it knows me personally or through Twitter, but to me the purpose of this blog is to vent (sometimes uncharacteristically) when the need arises, and possibly organize my thoughts in the process.

Some of you non-existent readers may be wondering why I've defined myself as a hypocrite, and to put it simply I've gone and done something completely out of my character (how ironic) and resent in other people.

I've cheated.

Now before you panic or criticize, I'll have you know that it was not on some 'partner' or person, or video game high score, it was on a small question on a test- and get this it was worth THREE marks.

Not worth the risk? Obviously.

Then why did I do it? Maybe I'm crazy?

I'm going to explain my actions because I have a funny feeling when I sulk into the office tomorrow afternoon for the 'dealing of the consequences' I won't be able to without the possibility of sounding like a blubbering idiot and just ruining my life even more. Yes, this entry is an odd form of my own self-justification-get over it.

Now, I've been overwhelmed lately, I'll be completely honest in saying I haven't been working around the clock, but I have done enough to know that I'm being overworked- but hey that's grade 12 for you. I'm under the constant pressure of giant workloads from classes, family “difficulties” and attempting to keep my social life in order- because I'm a teenager and that's important. This isn't an excuse for writing the definition of existentialism on my hand, but it is part of the reason I did it.

To sum it all up, I was so busy the night before working on an ISU novel project while multitasking with research on Hans Zimmer for Digital Audio Studies that I forgot to review existentialism.

OOPS!

So here we are, it's 15 minutes to my test, and I can't remember if it is “Existence Proceeds Essence” or “Persistence Exceeds Pretense” so, I did whatever a girl would when a half stoned kid suggests it from across the hallway- I wrote it on my hand.

And within 5 minutes of writing the test. BUSTED!

Lesson learned? Definitely. In all honesty, I'm so paranoid that they'll give me a zero on this test and I won't get into University that I cried for a good hour and a half, passed out from exhaustion, ate dinner, told my Mum, and sobbed a bit more. Pitiful eh?

But I think I'm through the hysterics and ready to face this like a calm and collected yet slightly insane human being.

Actually, can I do that? Can I go into the office tomorrow, and not plead Guilty or Innocent? The people who plead Insanity always get off the hook- and really I think I'm crazy for doing it in the first place. Blah.

Anywho, lame self-justification end. I've got to cheer up and face this before I become an existentialist myself (now THAT would be irony). Oh Oh! Rhetorical device! See? I know things? :)

I'm aware of the fact that what I did was wrong, unfair and downright silly, I'm not insane it's just my lazy procrastinating self catching up to my respectable self and it's 100% my fault. And really, if I hadn't been caught- I'd probably still feel crappy about it.

Conclusion: I plead GUILTY! ...and perhaps slightly insane. :)

-MegaTron out.

Homework, The Darkness To My Tunnel's Light

I write this with Hugh Jackman’s opening for the Oscars in my head. Why? Well, I’m writing about reading, and he sings about The Reader. It’s catchy, and if you, like me, are dangerously curious and get odd songs stuck in your head easily, then you will watch that opening and be singing ‘The Reader’ until you stumble upon another pointlessly catchy song. Perhaps ‘I Am Cow’?
Anyways, there really isn’t anything interesting happening in my life right now. I, like most high school students, am up to my eyes in homework. However, if I stand on my tip-toes I can see over the large pile of textbooks and ISP novels. I see a long dark tunnel with a light at the end of it. Comically enough, this light involves a large root beer, my Wicked novel and a towering pile of burnt previous homework assignments. Though, I’m not allowed near fire anymore, so I doubt the burning will occur, but a girl can dream.
I currently have four classes right now, three of them involving constant attention, the fourth? Not so much, but I won’t get into that now.
They are as followed.
English
World Religions
Ancient Civilizations
Physics
Now this post will focus on English, I’ll circulate through each subject in said order at another time.
Our current English project is a partnered movie trailer on Catcher in the Rye.
With the help of my partner in crime from OZitivelyWicked(Taryn), we are hoping for a high enough mark to;
A) Cancel out my dreadful physics mark
B) Show the World Religions teacher that I have future in video editing!
C) Market Taryn’s amazing acting skills
And
D) Improve my mark after the ‘Killer Sheep Incident’
Yes, we had another project last month, to read a short story and draw a picture to represent it. This is what I ended up with.

Funny enough the story was about three children and a storyteller, not a killer sheep, but I found that the picture related to the children’s loss of innocence quite effectively. Everything is not as children originally perceive it to be. Thus, a cute cuddly sheep at first glance, could turn out to be a vicious wild animal that eats children! You don’t see it? Well neither did the teacher marking it, sadly enough I nearly failed the thing. Yet, it is currently tacked to my bulletin board in the front entranceway to my house. Why? Well to show off my amazing art skills of course. :)
Conclusion: -It is now obvious that I’m not cut out for the world of English literature and interpretation.
-You may be able to ‘bull’ your way through some classes, but you can’t ‘bull’ your way through life!

-MegaTron