Gina Harris's Blog, page 155

Band Review: Brand New

I have had Brand New on my recommendations list for a while, ever since Matt Rubano praised them. Seeing that I would be doing a review on his birthday, this seemed like the perfect time.
Once I started listening, the second song brought back a memory. Back when I was disconnected from music, no longer getting it through television and radio and not yet knowing I could get it through the internet, somehow one of the music channels accidentally played a couple of videos and I saw them. They were "Head On Collision" by New Found Glory, and "The Quiet Things That No One Ever Knows", a song that stayed with me even though the band's name didn't.
Being reminded of that was already a good thing, and then getting to hear Brand New's other music was even better. Having done some making up for lost time, I can see where they fit into the time period better, and that's interesting. They start out with the earnest pathos of emo, but already standing apart by their energy and verbal cleverness. I am very fond of Your Favorite Weapon (especially "Last Chance to Lose Your Keys" and "Logan to Government Center"), but then there is this growth and expansion where their music becomes more sophisticated in later releases.
Not only is Brand New a good band to be reminded of, but this is also a good time to be reminded of them. Things going on now include this year's release of Leaked Demos 2006, with a chance to hear other versions of older songs; a 2015 single "Mene" that makes a new album seem possible; and a tour kicking off in June in Canada. This is all welcome.
So check out Brand New, and thank you Matt Rubano!
http://www.fightoffyourdemons.com/
https://www.facebook.com/BrandNew
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1XxJbkGfgPPIfGJ0PU0SPw
https://twitter.com/brandnewrock

The other thing

The last two posts should have made my priorities right now pretty clear. Career-wise I am working on my writing and internally I am working on my feelings about my body. There is one other thing. I am also trying to spend some time focusing on my mother.
I have written about her memory problems before, but only briefly - that is her story, though it does affect me.
We want to slow any decline as much as possible, and we try and do some enrichment activities for that, but there has not been a lot of time to give to it. I have time now.
I have been doing some reading that relates, and I have at least one more book to read, so this is ongoing, but I do have some areas of focus where I want to try and get new things integrated or existing things expanded. I need to be careful that it doesn't interfere with the writing, but some extra time with Mom should be possible.
My interests lie in four key areas:
Enrichment - This is what we have already been doing the most, trying to make sure that every day she does something that's a little bit different and that can help build new brain pathways. She has coloring books and word searches, and those are good, but doing the same activity each day would siphon away much of the impact, because part of the growth comes from variety. I hope to make that time less repetitious and more enriching.
Meditation - Sadly the book I read on meditation was horrible, but I believe it can still be helpful. This is actually one of those cases where I might be best served by doing an internet search instead of reading another book.
Exercise - My sisters and I are pretty regular with exercise, but Mom needs some activities more tailored to her needs. Fortunately we have some videos that she can do on her own, once the DVD player has been set up, and as the weather gets better we can go on short walks. Adrenaline can help memories set, so pumping up the adrenaline more could be helpful, within moderation.
Nutrition - We have already been working on less processed foods, more whole grains, fruits, and vegetables for all of us, with some progress and some more to go. However, it appears that she should also be eating more fish. I will try and make that happen just for her.

Selfies

I had said it was coming, but I finally started doing the 365 feminist selfie thing on March 1st.
Originally it seemed like a good idea to start right after completing the Throwback Thursday thing I was doing. That would have had me starting in November, but when my camera died in September that went out the window.
I ended up forgoing any other birthday wishes and only wanting a new camera for my birthday. That worked, making a January start possible, but there was still the process of figuring out how the new camera worked. It's a little different than the old one.
As I was starting to get the hang of that, I started obsessing over it being Leap Year. Would I have to type #366feministselfie? The simplest thing seemed to be to wait until March 1st to start, so that's what I did.
For a year I will take a daily selfie and post it to Facebook and Twitter. I am using the hash tag #365feministselfie on both, because that provides an easy way for anyone who is curious to get a better idea of why I might be doing it.
With 8 down and 357 to go, I probably haven't learned that much yet, but there are a few things I am noticing.
One is that I am already trying to think of different ways of doing things. I don't have that many different shirts. I don't know that I will be going anywhere cool in the near future, so it is just going to be this boring me over and over again. Will I be seeing anyone? Let's get them in the picture. Oh, I'm leaving the house today; maybe I can work that in. "Daily" is so relentless; there's no getting away from yourself. That's probably the point - that over and over again, just yourself is enough.
There is no getting away from flaws either. I know I am going to be fat in every picture, but my chin bothers me more than I thought, and my forehead is so huge. That's why I always wear bangs, but then in some of the pictures they fly away or are falling back, and there I am: fat, dorky, and with a huge forehead.
Also, my skin is really spotty lately, especially around the nose. For a long time I had pretty good skin without trying, and now I guess I need to try. Today I did a purifying mask, but of course that just made it worse for now. I knew that would happen, too, we had a young women's activity on it once. (Don't get a facial on the day of your date. Do it Sunday night so you look good at church and it has time to go down by Friday or Saturday night.) Only I still don't care enough to wear makeup.
I remember seeing a comment on someone not too long ago that her Facebook page was all selfies so obviously she was a total narcissist. I'm not sure that was true in her case, though there were probably other issues. One reason I put the hash tag is so people will know there are other reasons. A selfie can be an affirmation that you are there and you exist, and that you don't need to pay for a photographer to prove it.
My selfies are a tool that I hope will get me to a point where I don't cringe at how I look. Previously I thought the only means of accomplishing that would be somehow looking better, a goal which was always sadly elusive. Later I found that many beautiful women had similar levels of insecurity, as if it were against the rules to appreciate your body no matter what good points it has. It makes alienation from your body really easy.
The way I notice my flaws may make it seem like it's not working, but face yourself often enough and maybe you make peace with it.
The first obvious lesson is that no one has a problem with my body the way I do. This is important, because another of those rules seemed to be that women have to be attractive. No one is acting like I owe them any beauty, so maybe I'm okay there. Those affirmations are nice, but ultimately what will be most important is when it feels real to me.
It's a good time for it. The reasons that I chose March 1st may have been somewhat arbitrary, but in my other work I have gone through that initial sense of shame and always feeling like I was being silenced when I was sad. The next emotional hit was being told I was fat, and the disconnection from my body, and everything that went along with that. That's what I'm working on now, and daily selfies can help.
Moving on.

Going for broke

I haven't been keeping it a strict secret, but I haven't been saying a lot about it yet either: I am unemployed now.
Friday was my last day of work. I was told I was being laid off about two weeks ago, and have just been dealing with it since then. There are feelings of rejection of course, but there was no chicanery like with some of my other former employers; I have some severance and am eligible for unemployment benefits.
That puts me in a unique position. I have written a lot when I have been unemployed other times, but I was also stressed out about job hunting and bills and not getting any calls back on the many applications. The job market should be a bit better now than it was in late 2008/2009, but it's still not exactly fun.
I have also written quite a bit while working, but it's hard finding the time when there is always everything else. Trying to fit writing in with a full time job, family, and church is hard. I got called to a new committee shortly before this happened, and it's temporary, but I have some extra things on my plate going into May.
I have pay coming in through May 6th. Everything is currently caught up. I'm taking March for writing.
I won't say that it's not scary. If nothing sells, and then I have a hard time finding a regular job in April, I know I am going to be kicking myself, and my sisters may be kicking me too. However, if I don't take this chance, I know I will regret it for the rest of my life.
I am working on a television pilot. I need to finish it. Once I finished that there was one screenplay that I had in mind to write, but now another old idea that I didn't think I would do anything with is starting to feel feasible. That's a lot of writing to do. (Probably around 220 pages, give or take.)
I had been thinking about trying some agent queries again around now anyway. The last time I did that was also the last time I was unemployed. Unfortunately not only had the economy just crashed but a screenwriter's strike was pending, and no one had any interest in a new untested writer then. At the time, I believe I had just written my fourth screenplay. Now I have seven features, one pilot, and five books, plus two more features and another pilot on the way.
I had also planned on submitting a comic book pitch to Dark Horse in March. I may bump that a month. I'm sure my first comics pitch will fail, so it may be lower priority than things that could work.
If nothing happens in March, that doesn't mean that I'm going to stop writing. It will be back to having a day job and writing on the side. There are still more books to write. I still have stories to tell.
All it means is that I have this time where I can focus on what I want, and try and make it a reality. That doesn't always happen. Given the chance, I have to go for it.
It does feel like life is coming at me fast.

Band Review: JoyTribe

JoyTribe is a Portland funk band, accomplishing the funk with not just the usual guitar, drums and horn section, but also the occasional flute.
The music is generally fun, but there is not a wide selection available on the web. I have found two Soundcloud tracks and a few videos, one of which duplicates a Soundcloud track.
It is enough music to decide whether you would be interested in seeing them live, and that seems to be the band's main goal. If so, they have a pretty regular playing schedule, easily booking two to three dates per month in the Portland area.
If the videos whet your appetite (and you're in the Portland area), finding a chance to follow up on that should be fairly easy.
Tonight they play at Biddy McGraw's at 8 PM.
http://www.joytribemusic.com/
https://www.facebook.com/thejoytribe
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnh0c8a-QIK178rHMfIPuJQ
https://soundcloud.com/joytribe
https://twitter.com/joytribe

Band Review: Valise

I have liked Valise more on each subsequent listen.
I still find it hard to describe them. The best genre choice seems to be alternative, possibly leaning toward shoegaze. There is a sense of distance in the music - not that it is emotionally distant, but that you are hearing it through a filter, or that it is returning to you from the past. Without being oppressive, it gives an urgency to listening because there is something there that you need and that would be easy to miss. At least one of the videos, "Charlie Gray" carries a strong feeling a nostalgia, so perhaps the past is the answer.
There are beautiful grace notes, enhancing the moods. I don't know that they actually have used violins, but there is a feeling of wider options and variety as the music plays, reaching you in different ways.
You may just find Valise spellbinding.
http://www.valisemusic.com/
https://www.facebook.com/ValiseMusic/
https://www.youtube.com/user/valisemusic
https://soundcloud.com/valisemusic
https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/young-bloomer/id962449680?app=itunes
http://valise.bigcartel.com/
https://twitter.com/valisemusic

An open letter to the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative

Dear Mark and Priscilla,
I was touched by your letter to your new daughter. I can imagine few things more inspiring and more likely to create concern for the future than bringing a new life into the world.
You are to be commended for devoting such a large part of your fortune to building that better future. Such a large amount can be hard for the imagination to comprehend, and a better future can be so vague, that it would be easy for time to pass with very little being done beyond plans and consultations. Bold actions now will not only be their own changes but be more inspiring to others.
I agree with your instincts that key areas of focus are the environment and inequality. Here are some thoughts on projects that can be done now for a better tomorrow. Research is important, but we already know how to do a lot.
You could take one of the most coal-polluted cities in America and begin converting residences to solar. Installation costs are frequently listed at around $20000 per home, though costs are going down. With a project of this scale you could probably get some bulk pricing, but even at the $20K price you could convert fifty thousand homes.
Perhaps it would make sense to get into solar panel manufacturing, with some sales in addition to the donations. As a limited liability company, Chan Zuckerberg should have the option to do so, while still having the ability to provide living wage jobs without worrying about profit. Refusing to sell any applicable carbon credits will leave the air cleaner, and healthier.
Coal is not the only source of pollution. You could also select a city that is smoggy from cars, and have a trade-in program where drivers exchange their gas-powered cars for electric vehicles. A common price point for electric vehicles is below $30000, so with a billion dollars you could get over thirty three thousand vehicles changed out, recycling the older vehicles. Many people would like to reduce their carbon footprint, but can't afford to. You could make that a reality for thousands.
Economic inequality plays a key role in environmental inequality, as we are especially seeing now with the water situation in Flint, Michigan. There could certainly be a use for funds there, and for the lead paint issue in Chicago. Perhaps there are city or state authorities who should take responsibility, at least in holding various companies responsible, but they are moving slowly and people are being poisoned now.
Handling specific problems for an area is one approach, but it could also be beneficial to give people extra money to use as they see fit. One idea that could come into play in the future is a guaranteed income. Canada has done some experimenting, but there was a chance to track similar circumstances in the United States when the opening of a new casino gave Cherokee families an extra $500 a month, which included children who were already part of a study. (The Great Smoky Mountains Study of Youth, 1996)
The children did well. They were healthier and happier and got more out of school, without anyone other than their parents determining how to spend the additional money. You could replicate this. Find a poor community, and you could give over 33,000 families an extra $500 per month for five years, then see how they do. That would begin making a difference as soon as it started.
The economy plays an important role in inequality, but it is not the only factor. There are systemic patterns in place that make discrimination real, and make it feel like the most natural thing in the world.
This can be fought through media. You could form a film production company seeking out directors of color, both men and women. Give them the opportunity to tell stories with diverse casts and crew. Not only will this help with representation, but it can even make trips to the theater better; so often the movies currently playing are infected with a dreadful sameness.
This type of diversity is needed in publishing too. It is especially important for children's books, as young readers are unconsciously learning who is worthy of empathy. You could seek out authors of different races as well, and let them create books featuring different races, cultures, ages, and abilities. Like the production studio, that would be a business, but there would be room for a charity there too. We know that it is important for children to own books, and getting these books into the hands of children could be a program as well.
These programs would be especially useful because the creative class has suffered so much in this new age. Not only has that affected writers, musicians, and artists, but it has made journalists an increasingly endangered species. That has happened at a time when people need to be able to get good information on what is going on in the world more than ever.
You could help here. With your background in social media, you could work on finding ways to better meet the needs of journalists for investigations and for dissemination of their findings. You might even be able to find a way to make it profitable. With your fortune, even if the news could not be profitable without being compromised, you could still pay them.
These are just some ideas, but my ideas are not even necessary. If you ever look through a catalog of the World Wildlife Fund, or at the Greater Good website, there are always various projects beyond the day to day that they are attempting to fund. There is always something that could be done right now if someone would step up. A donation to Strike Debt could relieve the anxiety of thousands. Scrolling through Kiva or any crowdfunding sites will show you many dreams ready to be fulfilled, and only needing money.
Many of them, having been helped once, will then pay it forward to others. There can be reciprocal effects that will echo for years. Mainly though, I hope this letter will remind you of the potential of right now.
Thank you for your attention.
Sincerely,
Gina Harris

Raising my voice

In the process of preparing my letter to Grimm yesterday, I looked up the other things I'd written, and it seems possible that I had been thinking about writing to them since May.
That one was not pure procrastination, because a lot of the delay was in knowing where to send it. I ended up tweeting the blog link to the longstanding production names who have accounts on Twitter (plus one of the current writers) and to the show's Twitter account as well. It was probably not effective; more of a shouting into the void situation.
Today's reaching out was more clear-cut. I have been meaning to write to various elected officials about the massive calamity that a major earthquake striking the Oregon Fuel Depot would be.
I had been working on earthquake articles for the preparedness blog after The New Yorker ran an article on the coming Cascadia Megaquake and how it would spell DOOM! DOOM! for the entire region. People were concerned, and there were things I could address. I wrote some, but with the Oregon Frontline special coming in October, it felt like I should wait for that.
In time I recorded the special, watched the special, and wrote to one of the people featured in the special. I asked for recommendations on what to do about the fuel depot situation, because that seemed like the single greatest threat, and one completely unaffected by personal preparedness.
I didn't hear back until December, but then it was time to write to elected officials, only it was the holiday season, and then some other things happened and it was President's Day weekend, and you just feel like there are times when your message is more likely to get lost.
Actually, I had already written to the city of Portland contacts, but today I wrote to federal, state, and local elected leaders. Tuesday morning had always been the target for effective sending times, and I actually managed that.
Ideally there will have been more people have been expressing concern and interest. It takes more than one person to really exert pressure, but it's a start. I meant to have my say, and I said it. (In that vein, I also remembered to submit a review of Quicken Loans and some feedback to HUD on FHA requirements today).
Tomorrow's reaching out will have even less chance of being heard, but I am doing it anyway. I am doing it because I believe that as a person I am worthy of being heard. I am doing it because I believe I have good ideas. And especially with today's outreach, I am doing it because I believe we need each other.
One of the points that I tried really hard to make in the earlier earthquake articles is that society can only collapse if we let it. Preventing that requires working together, but that is something that is possible and it is necessary, so working toward it is the only responsible thing.
I am trying to do my part.

Related posts:
http://preparedspork.blogspot.com/2015/12/write-to-your.htmlhttp://preparedspork.blogspot.com/2015/12/contacting-government.html

An open letter regarding "Grimm"

"Grimm" was solidly my favorite television series for a good three years. That started to waver a bit in the fourth season. I continue to watch the show, but is has been less rewarding.
I write this without knowing that I can even get anyone to see it because I care about the show. I care about the power of entertainment in general, but I care about this show in particular because of what has gone before and because of my fondness for the people involved.
I have had some thoughts about (and even blogged about) this before, but since then I have seen the Showrunners documentary. Joss Whedon's interview provides a good way of talking about this, which feels like a sacrifice of "moments" at the expense of "moves".
(There is a quote captured at the end of http://io9.gizmodo.com/so-you-want-to-be-a-tv-writer-showrunners-share-their-1629692078.)
Moves are the big dramatic things that happen. For the most part I think "Grimm" is still doing great with the plot twists it chooses. Even some of the moves that seem more questionable could work if they were given the appropriate moments, but it feels like those character moments are being neglected. This ends up damaging the characters.
This may be easiest to see in the arc of Juliette becoming a hexenbiest. That was a big move, but one for which the groundwork had been well-laid and which had amazing future potential.
It should have been the most exciting thing to watch. Instead it got very repetitive as Juliette went around angrily demanding her life back and then angrily not wanting her life back, with very little feeling of any of it being emotionally real.
This was most obvious in Juliette's interactions with Rosalee. To hit one plot point Rosalee was acting so out of character that it had to happen in a dream. The "She's a freaking hexenbiest" line was funny, but it didn't feel right in the context.
What was really needed was a scene where Juliette was able to talk about her fear of losing herself, and Rosalee was able to listen, and promise to try and help her. They were robbed of that time together.
It wouldn't have to take away from Juliette's ultimate turn to the dark side. There could have been the initial struggle, and an attempt to make her new identity fit in with her old life and friends, with the news of Adalind's pregnancy still pushing Juliette over the edge. That would have been more believable and more compelling.
It does feel like this shift has served the female cast worse, but for a few episodes, especially Hibernaculum and Double Date, it really did seem to make all of the cops worse as cops. That was unfortunate, because Nick, Hank, and Wu being good cops is part of why we like them.
I have seen other feedback online that indicates similar complaints. That's a concern, but fixing this doesn't even require a major overhaul. It's a fairly minor adjustment that would have a huge payoff. "Grimm" has a great cast, and a large part of the popularity of the show is their likeability. It would be a shame to squander that potential.
I appreciate any consideration that this gets.
Sincerely,Gina Harris

Related posts:http://sporkful.blogspot.com/2015/05/grimm-season-4.htmlhttp://sporkful.blogspot.com/2015/05/still-watching-grimm.html

Band Review: Joan Armatrading

When reviewing an artist with as extensive a career as Joan Armatrading, there is not time to delve into the work as deeply as with the newer bands. That is frustrating in that it feels impossible to do justice to the music.
So, Joan Armatrading has a beautiful voice, rich with depth and polish. She conveys emotion powerfully.
With four decades of recordings, her music has touched on different genres, but is more defined by her voice than anything else.
Favorite songs of mine included "Drop the Pilot", "Down to Zero", and "The Weakness in Me" - all of which show up among her more popular works, but also which give a good idea of how fun she can be and how much she can make you ache.
http://www.joanarmatrading.com/
https://www.facebook.com/joanarmatrading
https://twitter.com/ArmatradingJoan