| More DJ ChairmanMoe Stuff! |
[Jul. 31st, 2009|01:12 pm] |
Hi all, I know I haven't been writing a whole lot about myself lately and I do apologize for that...just know that things are well. Life is good, the boy is nearly a year old (eep!), we're settling into our place quite nicely (despite the recent heatwave) and there are few complaints, overall...so, yay!
I did want to remind everyone that I've got this new thing I'm doing, over on KBCS radio - I'm 4 weeks/shows into my show, which is called "Recycled Music", which is on every Thursday morning, from 3-5am PDT.
Now, I'm not expecting my friends to get up/stay up to listen (although that would be uber-cool) but I am encouraging folks to give a listen via the KBCS archives - you just search via the date and you can find my show.
I'm also on Facebook, and I'm posting my weekly play lists and other assorted things that I find along the way - so, if you like, you can become a fan there and keep in touch.
Thanks! |
|
|
| DJ ChairmanMoe is on Facebook |
[Jul. 7th, 2009|09:04 am] |
Hey gang...this is for everyone who has me here but not on FB. I can't set up a username for DJ ChairmanMoe page yet, but I will, eventually. In the meantime, if you do a search for "DJ ChairmanMoe", you should be able to find it. If not, let me know.
I'll be posting play lists, show info, and other stuff there, so you can follow along...we're less than 48 hours away from the first show...eep! |
|
|
| DJ ChairmanMoe and Recycled Music is set to go! |
[Jul. 2nd, 2009|12:56 pm] |
So, remember when I took that broadcasting class at Bellevue (formerly Community) College? Back in November? Then I submitted a demo tape (CD, really, but whatever) at the end of December? Then I steadily emailed them with requests for updates re: my demo for 5 months? Then, right before the Memorial Day long weekend, they offered me the Thursday 3-5am time slot? Then there was some more stuff that had to happen?
Remember all that? Do ya?
Well, it was all totally worth it, as I actually get to go on the air next Thursday morning! That's right, on July 9th, Recycled Music hits the air and no one will be safe. It'l be fun, it'll be interesting, chances are it'll be a trainwreck...but, it'll get better. Really.
I'm not expecting anyone to actually get up at 3, or stay awake to listen in...if you really want to, and you live in the Seattle area - it'll be on KBCS, 91.3. Chances are, you'll be streaming the show, which you can do live (again, no pressure) or via the archives section. Just check out KBCS.fm and go to "Listen Live" or "Playlists: - the latter will have a link to the archives and you can find my show, soon after I go off the air.
I'm pretty psyched about this - I've been looking forward to it for a long time and now, it gets to happen...I'm trying to not get my hopes up too much, or put too much pressure on myself to do a "perfect" show. Ideally, I just want to get behind the mic, play some tunes, and see what the hell happens... |
|
|
| Update? Seriously? |
[May. 23rd, 2009|09:55 pm] |
Ok, yeah...nothing written lately - usually, when things are going bad, I'm posting here regularly. When things are good, I'm posting a lot less...seems my last post was about 9 weeks ago, right when we were finishing our move.
Some stuff has happened since... ;-)
The move and such went well; we had some help and people were awesome in giving us a hand and we're settling in quite nicely. Granted, we've still got some boxes in the living room, and the second bedroom still looks like a storage bin, but we're slowly working thru it all and (eventually) it'll get done. No, really.
The family is doing good. The boy is growing and thriving and being an awesome little bundle of fun...except when he's fussy, which (thankfully) is a rare thing. He;s teething right now, so that makes him a little more cranky, but he (and we) is dealing pretty well, I think. In the meantime, he's over 9 months old, very close to walking, and incredibly vocal. All and all, good times... :-)
Work is work, and I'm thankful for the job.
The Stay Up Late Show is on summer hiatus, and I think we've done incredibly well; we're all working well together and we have a lot of fun working on the show...I'm looking forward to the fall, when we bring the show back...wheeee!
The big news for me is something that's been in the works for nearly 6 months. Last fall, I took a continuing studies course in Radio Broadcasting at BCC - and, by the end of December I submitted a demo tape, looking for a chance to have my own show on the college radio station, KBCS.
Well, after about 5 months of waiting, I found out the other day that my demo and show submission was accepted and I was offered a time slot, for my own show! And, I think it'll be an awesome show - it'll be called "Recycled Music" and will be a 2 hour show featuring cover tunes...I'm excited about it.
Now, the time slot is 3am to 5am, Thursday mornings...and, I'm not expecting any of my friends to actually stay up and listen to my show, either on the radio or online - it would be very sweet and appreciated, but not expected. However, KBCS does archive it's shows, for 2 weeks, and they can be streamed via the website. So, people can listen whenever they like, as long as they're online...
I'm meeting with the station's program manager sometime next week and I'll have a better idea of when I'll actually start working there...well, volunteering - it's a college/communty station, which means that all the announcers are volunteers.
But, who cares? I've got a radio show! Yay me! I'll share more details when I get them. |
|
|
| Kill me now, seriously... |
[Mar. 17th, 2009|11:45 am] |
Moving sucks. Have I mentioned that before? And, regardless of where you're moving, the process is still horrible. We only moved across the street and I am hurting so much right now, I'd be willing to listen to any offers to make this go away...
Ok, it's not that bad (almost) but my lower back and left hamstring would say differently.
We're almost done, thanks to some friends who came over during the weekend and helped out - if not for them, I don't know where we'd be and the thought makes me shiver a little.
Right now, we've just got a bunch of little things and such to finish clearing from the old place, then part 2 of the adventure begins in earnest. The whole unpacking and what-not.
The timing was crazy, too, as I had a Stay Up Late Show on Saturday night; so, after a full day of moving stuff, I had to switch mental gears and run a show that ran until 12:30. Thankfully, I got my second wind and managed to get thru somewhat unscathed.
Part of me wishes I was home finishing the move and unpacking, rather than being here, because there's just so much to do and with the boy, it's hard to accomplish a lot in the 2-3 hours between getting him down and going to bed ourselves. Then again, being here means I'm not making my back or leg any worse.
I get a sense that we'll be doing little things and living out of boxes until the weekend, and then make a big push towards making the new place livable...I'd rather get more done sooner, but circumstances and such may not make it possible. And, I think the stress from it not being done would be less than the stress of trying to rush through and get everything done a.s.a.p, which would just make us miserable in the process.
We've been working really well together during this move and managed to not let ourselves get angry at each other, even thought some moments got pretty stressful; I feel that we're getting way better at seeing those moments coming and knowing to step back, not allowing ourselves to get caught up in the moment's negative energy.
We're also making sure to take the time to reconnect when those moments come at us, to make sure we're in the same head-space and on the same page - seeing and avoiding the bumps in the road, and doing it together, is pretty awesome. It's a really good feeling. |
|
|
| This weekend...um, yeah. |
[Mar. 10th, 2009|10:23 pm] |
So, I think I've mentioned the condo we recently bought and the fact that we'd be eventually moving, right?
Well, "eventually" kinda snuck up on us and we're moving this weekend. Saturday, to be exact. Anyone got 2 hands and a back in decent shape, and a little time to spare?
There'll be fun, and pizza, and you'll get our eternal gratitude *and* photo-opportunities with O! How can you resist? Did I mention the fun? Or the fact that the condo is only across the street from our current apartment? This should be a pretty easy move (famous last words...)
If you have the time/energy, drop me a line and I'll send more details! |
|
|
| When did I become so responsible? Seriously? |
[Feb. 19th, 2009|09:59 am] |
Well, for those not on the FaceBook, or those who want some more details after seeing my latest status update - yesterday, L and I became the signed, sealed, and delivered owners of a condo.
5 years ago, if you had told me that in 5 years, I'd be married, a father, and a homeowner - I'd have arranged an intervention for you, because you had obviously found some really bad drugs...but, here I am. And, it feels pretty good, ya know?
Anyways, we got the keys yesterday and wandered over for a few minutes, to just take in the atmosphere of our own place.
I say "wandered over" as our new place is across the street from our current apartment. No, really. We've spent the last few years watching the building across the street go from apartments to condos, and when the chance to actually buy a place on the Hill came along, we went for it. And, we didn't have to go far.
The chance came, as we were able to grab the only 2-bedroom unit in the building that wasn't renovated in the condo-conversion, due to the building owners running out of money. So, while a lot of the other units have the fancy marble counters and stainless-steel appliances, we still have the industrial-style carpet and older kitchen. And, that's okay.
Hopefully, the close location means that the move will be somewhat easy; as we'll be able to do it in bits and pieces over the next few weeks, rather than doing the whole thing over one incredibly hellish weekend. if we get the smaller pieces done, the final push won't be *that* bad...we hope.
But, before that, we're looking at a little re-decorating, which is somewhat foreign to us both. After being renters for so long, the idea of being able to change something in a living space seems odd...but, I'm sure we'll get over it after we start tearing up the carpet and throwing some paint on the walls.
So, there we go - we now own property. Today, our home - tomorrow, the world!
(insert evil laughter here...) |
|
|
| Quick, update-y tpe thing... |
[Feb. 10th, 2009|09:04 am] |
Just waiting for the techs to finish a patch on our database software, so I thought I'd take the time to step away from FaceBook (evil thing that it is) and actually post here, instead...crazy talk, eh?
Life continues on; things are good at home. The boy continues to amaze and impress, as he gets older and becomes more aware and interactive - granted, he always seemed to have this sense of awareness that I haven't seen in other babies; other people commented on it, too so I'm not being the biased father here... ;-)
The work thing continues on, as well...at least I'm still working.
*knocks on wood*
It's been a constant battle to try and get caught up on stuff; we're still processing donations from December, trying to get the calendar year finished, and dealing with the 6+ weeks of back-log of 2009. I'm all for job security, but there's got to be an easier way. At least there's extra hours and overtime available.
Had something of a wake-up call yesterday; for those who don't know, I've been taking wellbutrin for the last few months. Winter has a habit of kicking my ass both physically and mentally, so this year, (with L's help) I've managed to get some assistance. I've been working to increase my vitamin D levels (which are less that half of what they should be) and I've been taking these meds, as well.
A few months ago, I started on a low level and L said she noticed a difference in my general demeanor, but I wasn't really feeling it myself. So, I mentioned to the doctor that while L was seeing a difference, I was having trouble seeing it - so, he increased the dosage. Doubled it, actually.
(Looking back, I realized that there were a few instances where I had reacted better to a situation than I probably would have a year ago - the fact that I've been so patient with the situation at work is another sign that things seems to be working.)
Anyways, I've been on the higher dosage for over a month now and yesterday, I really noticed the difference - in that I slept in and didn't take my meds. I spent the better part of the day on edge and pretty agitated at everyone and everything. I realized what was going on and did my best to keep my head down and just keep to myself until I could go home.
It's amazing how missing one day could make such a difference, and it unnerves me, too - to know that these meds make that difference and how my mind works when I miss a day. Just one day. I'm not sure how much I like knowing this, or realizing just how bad I was before starting these meds...I feel like I owe some people some apologies.
Oh yeah - have some new pics of the boy! |
|
|
| I have to share this before my head explodes... |
[Feb. 5th, 2009|02:28 pm] |
Ok, I'm at work and I get an email. I open my Inbox, but almost immediately receive an error message and Lotus (yes, we use Lotus Notes) crashes. I reopen Lotus, go to the Inbox, and Crash! it happens again.
So, I call the help desk and leave a voice message, explaining the situation. 20+ minutes later, I get a call, and they suggest rebooting my computer, and calling them back after I check Lotus again...
I'm thinking "Well, I'm not sure how rebooting my system will affect the mail server, but what the hell?" So, I reboot, go into Lotus and Crash!
I call them back, say it happened again, and they access my system remotely. They open Lotus and yadda, yadda, yadda...
They open Lotus again, and in the time it took between them crashing and reopening the application, their help desk system sent me an email, acknowledging my voicemail and request for help.
So, now they see who the email is from, as the offending email is no longer at the top of my Inbox. They start explaining how this person does some kind of odd formatting when they send an email out, and I'm like "well, you may get some more calls re: this email before the day is over."
They agree and say "Maybe we should talk to them, see about getting them to not do that formatting."
(This is when my headache starts...you know the kind, they gather strength at the back of your neck, and come over the top of your head, live a wave crashing onshore...one of those.)
I count to 5 and say "Yeah, that might be a good idea. In the meantime, what do I do about this email still sitting in my Inbox?"
They start laughing and say "Don't open it."
I count to 10 and reply "Are you serious?"
They say "Yup. Just leave it alone."
With that, they end the call and I'm left staring at the receiver in my hand...and, I now know why the I.T. department works from behind locked doors. It's for their own safety... |
|
|
| Monthly update? |
[Jan. 14th, 2009|11:11 am] |
Well, it's looking like that lately, isn't it? I've just been so swamped with life and stuff, my journalling has really suffered...
(usually, being busy is a good thing, but I'd still like to write about it and have it somewhere where I can remember it later on...)
- Burning Man tickets went on sale today...we missed last year, for a very good reason, and we're probably going to miss this year, too - for the same reason. I may find some house/trance music to listen to, just because...
- O (the boy) is doing very well; he's recently doubled his birth weight and I think he's getting taller, still - we haven't measured him lately, as he has this inability to hold still long enough to get a tape measure on him. No biggie; we've got a doc's appointment next week and we'll see how's he's growing then...
- Work is kinda crazy these days; between the Xmas rush, the amount of snow days/holidays we had in December, and the fact that the servers we use have a tendency to suck, we're pretty far behind and not sure when we'll be caught up...And, with the flooding in the area, we're expecting to get hit with another round of donations. Maybe things will slow down in March? Who knows? I'd try looking for a new job, but with the way things are these days, it's not worth the time. Even the recruiters who used to email me every week have been quiet...
- Still waiting to hear back from KBCS; I sent in a demo at the end of December, and got an acknowledgment from the Program Manager on the 2nd of Jan...but, haven't heard anything since. They say it takes close to a month before you hear back, so I'm hoping that things are still progressing and they liked what I did. It would be very sweet to actually have a radio show, even though the only available time slots are between 3-5 am...the price we pay for our art.
- Speaking of art, or things that resemble it - I made it back to the Stay Up Late Show last weekend, and that was all kinds of fun. We have a new producer with all kinds of energy and ideas for the show, and even tho' we three seem to have different styles of working, but there may be enough common ground that we can make it work. I'm hopeful and we'll see how things progress...
- People are looking at me a little odd when I tell them I think I've got a crush on the chick in the Progressive insurance ads...I'm not sure why they give me these looks, but what can you do?
- live goes on... |
|
|
| (no subject) |
[Dec. 1st, 2008|11:54 am] |
What was that blur? Oh, that was November! Jeez!
First, let me start with what is my favorite Slog entry to date:
Lindy West may be my new favorite Stranger columnist.
Ok, so, what's new? Well, this month has been filled with all kinds of activity:
- I opened two shows, one during the first weekend and one over this past long weekend. Both very different experiences, but both went pretty well for me. Good reviews on the first, and I hear that opening weekend for the latter went nicely - now we wait for the reviews.
- I completed a Continuing Studies course at BCC; studying Basic Broadcasting in the evenings, and working towards becoming a part of the on-air crew at the college's radio station, KBCS. I've already started on the process to getting my own show, but there are several steps left to go...I wish I had a time frame as to when I could actually be on the air, but I'm going as quickly as I can. When I get closer, I'll be sure to let folk know.
- Oscar is still being his little awesome self, but he's getting to be less little - he's growing by leaps and bounds, according to the results from the doctor. At this rate, he'll be taller than L or I by the time he starts school...
- Found out about some family drama happening while talking to my mom over the weekend, all stemming back to our trip to NY in October. Seems that my dad has his undies in a knot, as he feels he was "slighted" by not being "invited" to come to NY, according to my mom.
Personally, I wasn't aware that he needed to be invited - I remember when talking to my mom about our trip, she originally wanted us to go to Nfld after NY, but we couldn't manage the extra time off work - I was already out of vacation time for that week, and was given the time off by my generous manager. Anyways, we worked it out to have my Mom come to NY while we were there - and, it seems that Dad felt he got left out of the loop, as it were.
Funny, I didn't think he would need an invite - that if he wanted to come, he would have said something and the arrangements could have been made. Then again, I'm pretty sure that if we had invited him, he would have made some excuse and blown the whole thing off, so it would have been a moot point.
The best part of this (personally) was when Dad finally confronted Mom about this (over a month after the trip) she turned around and verbally blasted him, but hard. With choice language I'd not expect from a JW, to boot. Frankly, I laughed my ass off when she told me what she said. And, it was fully deserved.
I haven't talked to Dad in awhile, and I'm not quite sure what I'll say when I do talk to him. He had plenty of time before October to bring up the topic of the trip, to ask anything about it, but he didn't. If he's pissed, I'm not all that concerned. If he wanted to be there, he would have made it happen. |
|
|
| Am I a bad person? |
[Nov. 4th, 2008|10:09 pm] |
Ok, let me say that I am thrilled that Obama won and even happier that Gregoire won the Gubernatorial race here in WA (as a Rossi win would have really affected me personally)..
But, as we're watching the coverage on tv, when the new First Family made their entrance on the stage in Chicago and made their way to the podium, the theme from "The Jeffersons" started running thru my head...
I am *so* going to hell, aren't I? |
|
|
| (no subject) |
[Nov. 4th, 2008|11:15 am] |
Excuse me as I geek out a little:
|
|
|
| (no subject) |
[Nov. 1st, 2008|10:14 pm] |
|
Your result for The what extinct animal are you? Test... Dire WolfThe large canine! 
Direwolf Wolf: You are a Direwolf wolf. You lived during the pleistocene along with the large deer, megaloceros. Larger and less intelligent than the wolves today, your species died out long ago. Take The what extinct animal are you? Test at HelloQuizzy
Why do I have Duran Duran running thru my head?? |
|
|
| This is how my mind works...sadly. |
[Oct. 28th, 2008|08:23 am] |
I'm sitting at my desk, trying to get my day started and I notice my phone ringing.
It's on silent, so it doesn't disturb anyone around me, of course.
I pick it up and the number is one I don't recognize, so I let it go to voice mail. A minute later, the voice mail appears, so I listen to it.
Turns out, it was a wrong number...It was a call for a Mr. and Mrs. Sharpe, from their son Nick's spanish teacher. Seems the teacher was calling the parents to let them know that she gave Nick a hour of detention yesterday for "inappropriate language in the classroom" and left her number, if they wanted to call her back...
Of course, after I deleted the message, the first thought that came to my mind was:
What counts as inappropriate language in a spanish class? Was the kid speaking french? German? Latin?
Obviously, I need more coffee... |
|
|
| stuff around the office... |
[Oct. 23rd, 2008|01:34 pm] |
My manager has been out of the office a lot lately, helping promote a book that he had a hand in publishing. Over the course of his travels, he was at a dinner in Ohio, where he sat at the same table as John Glenn - the senator, astronaut, all around american hero. He even sent us a pic of himself with Sen. Glenn and sent it to all of us here.
He's back today, and asking people if they saw the picture he sent. Everyone did, but when he asked if they knew who the other person in the photo was, only myself and one other person actually knew. Some hadn't even heard the name before and were totally befuddled...
It was a little sad, as you could actually see the wind get taken out of his sails, as he got blank look after blank look, and everyone saying "Who?"...
There's more stuff happening in my life, and I'll get around to posting about it, eventually. L and O are doing awesome and I'm swamped - apparently, I have issues with scheduling my time: as in, "an inability to do so properly"... |
|
|
| Back in the groove... |
[Oct. 6th, 2008|03:46 pm] |
So, last week, some folks (those on FB) saw odd updates about us being in Danbury, and "Oscar Tour 2008" and so on. Allow me to explain.
Last week, we flew out to the other coast, to visit L's family. Normally, we'd say "You seem rather ambulatory; if you want to see the WatSmith offspring, come visit - we got us an airport nearby and everything."
The exception to the rule is L's grandfather; he's 87 and not ready for a 6 hour flight, so we bundled up T.L.F. and we hit the road, as it were.
There was a little anxiety around the trip; between wondering how Oscar would handle the flight, and how we would handle the general energy of so many family members in one place at one time, we were unsure of how the week would go.
Heck, we were downright worried about some of these elements, but knowing that grandpa needed to meet his first great-grandson, we tucked those fears and anxieties aside and headed east.
Most of the week was a blur, but there were moments that stick out.
Flying (in general) didn't seem to bother Oscar in the slightest; I think we were both slightly traumatized by the moments when I changed his diaper in the airplane bathroom - it's less a changing table, but more a slab upon which babies could be changed, only if the bed of nails was already occupied.
Watching Oscar play with his great grandpa was the best part of the trip and we got some great pics of the two of them together - which will be posted soon, so relax.
My mom also made the trip, and met us there - we were staying in a hotel in Danbury, CT, which was like a middle ground for all the traveling we had to do. It wasn't at anyone house, and no one was put out or anything. It was a compromise that worked out for everyone.
One odd thing about being in Danbury; we were watching Metalocalypse on the Cartoon Network (a guilty pleasure of ours) and one of the characters says "Danbury, Connecticut is more brutal than Norway."
um...weird.
The week wasn't a vacation, but more an extended round of "pass the baby" and by the end of it, I think we were all glad to be home. I'm sure there are more cool things that happened, but I'm not all that coherent right now and my memory isn't what it used to be. We're all home, and back to work, and working on setting up a little routine that will help us all get thru the fall/winter that's slowly approaching... |
|
|
| (no subject) |
[Sep. 24th, 2008|09:22 am] |
Waiting for the week to be over...
It would be easier if I could sleep the week away, but it's looking like I'm going to be awake for the whole f'n thing...
I'm working on the latest Brown Derby show and it's kicking my ass a little harder than the previous ones have; I'm tempted to blame the boy on this one, but I know it's not his fault. I'm just not sleeping and that's pretty much all there is to it.
Anyways, we opened "Tootsie" last night and it went well. I got to see a few folks, including the ever-cool ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) motomotoyama, and her friend Foxy, both of whom I got to hang out with for a few minutes. I even got some folks from my work to drop by and they say they really enjoyed it. I get a kick out of getting people who've never seen a Brown Derby to show up for the first time. It's pretty cool, since (as far as I know) there really isn't anything else like it around here...
We have 2 more nights of the show, then I get to relax for 5 minutes before we get ready for our upcoming trip to NY; since L's grand-father isn't up for traveling, we're bringing the boy out to meet his great grand-father...the time away will be good, and it'll give L and I a chance to actually spend some time together again. With the show and our schedules, it feels like we barely see each other lately, which really sucks...
Continuing the theme of "things involving suckage", I saw a job posting for a position creating data used for testing linguistic proofing tools for various applications. Reading the job description, I thought "wow, I can totally do this" and I sent off a resume.
The recruiter replied within 10 minutes, and that has *never* happened to me before. We got on the phone, we talked for a bit, I discussed my writing background, my testing skills, and various other things and it was all sounding good. Especially the pay rate and that I'd be moving back into something closer to the tech industry.
Then, she said she was going to send me a quick test to complete and send back; a little something to test my linguistic skills. I figured it wouldn't be an issue, I've done these little tests before, it's no big deal, right?
um...yeah. Think again.
I get this questionnaire, and the questions involve phrases I hadn't even seen before. It was a case of "I know what those individual words mean, but the sequence in which they've been placed is making my eyes bleed. Please make it stop."
I showed the questionnaire to L, who's a bigger english grammar geek than I am. She looked at it and just started laughing. It wasn't a cruel or condescending laugh, more a "I'm as lost as you are, so let's enjoy the moment" kinda laugh.
Anyways, I ended up emailing the recruiter this morning and saying "Um yeah, if I actually managed to make it through the interviews, I'd be spending the better part of my work day on Google, trying to figure this stuff out. You'd best find someone else, thanks."
So, I'm back at my desk, doing my little data entry thing...maybe I should get some lotto tickets after work... |
|
|
